


Two Perspectives, One Shared Life

by SandsnakeQueen



Category: Bleach
Genre: Afterlife, Allies, Best Friends, Brother-Sister Relationships, Childhood Friends, Clans, Complicated Relationships, Don't copy to another site, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Love, Nobility, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Shinigami/Zanpakutou Bond, Spirit World, Spirits, Zanpakutou, Zanpakutou Materialization, canon-with-a-twist, friendship-turned-relationship, soul society - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-27
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2019-10-17 20:45:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 27,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17567672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SandsnakeQueen/pseuds/SandsnakeQueen
Summary: Byakuya Kuchiki and Minata Fukudome have been best friends since they were little kids. They both share similar lives as members of two of the Four Great Noble Families of Soul Society. Now join them and their zanpakuto as they go through the Bleach series, one event after another. The fillers are included. XD (Don't worry, I try to make them work).Many of the characters from the series will appear. It just depends on when.This is cross-posted from my account on Fanfiction





	1. The News

**Author's Note:**

> Hi y'all! 
> 
> I do not own Bleach. Never have, never will, but I do love the story and its characters, and that’s why this story was created. It just happens to have my unique spin on it.
> 
> Just to give you a head’s up, the zanpakuto spirits will be in their humanoid forms throughout the story. I know they’re usually not supposed to appear like this until the shinigami are training to achieve their bankai, but for the sake of this fic, I’ve waived that rule. The Rebellion arc was a particular favorite of mine, and I’ve always wondered how things could have been different if the spirits were around all the time, especially in terms of character interactions.
> 
> This story will start from way in the beginning of the Bleach series, and this will be a Byakuya/OC fic. I'm hoping to have half of each chapter from the OC's point of view and the other will be from Byakuya's, but that is subject to change depending on how things went in canon.  
> I hope you all enjoy!

**New Characters Introduced**

 

1\. Minata Fukudome - The current third seat of the 1st Division. She is the granddaughter of the current leader and the heiress of the Fukudome Clan, one of the Four Great Noble families. Members of her clan are known for their unique powers (which they simply call ‘gifts’). She has been Byakuya's closest friend since they were little and has always been one of his main confidants. Her zanpakuto is Mizukiri.

 

2\. Mizukiri - Minata Fukudome's zanpakuto. Her name means water mist (Mizu-water, kiri-mist). She is a water-type zanpakuto and is close to many of the other spirits, especially Senbonzakura, Sode no Shirayuki, and Hyorinmaru.

* * *

**_Minata's_ ** _**POV**_

“This mission is of the utmost importance. Make sure they know that Third Seat Fukudome. . .”

". . . I will tell them right away, Captain Commander. You have my word," my tone was firm as I kept my head bowed, ignoring the pit that was steadily growing in my stomach. I couldn’t see the old man’s face at the moment, but I knew he was watching me with a closed-eyed gaze that had seen centuries more than anyone else within the Soul Society.

He had called me in to his office just a short while ago, pulling me away from the group of new recruits and transfers I was leading around the barracks for a building tour. Usually that was Lieutenant Sasakibe’s task, but he was busy preparing for the Division’s monthly tea party later this afternoon, leaving the duty to me.

The Captain Commander was known for keeping his reiatsu in check, only letting it loose when the situation called for it, but I could still feel traces of it as soon as I walked into the hallway that led to his office.

It was one of the unique side effects of being a member of my clan. Us Fukudomes were known for our unique sensitivity to spiritual pressure, even feeling the faintest, almost hidden, traces of it when others could not. It made us excellent trackers . . . A skill that makes us popular with general search teams and the Onmitsukido, but disliked by those that don’t want to be found.

When I arrived, a messenger was just leaving, and judging from his expression, the news he had to share with my captain was not good.

What I eventually heard confirmed my suspicions.

When he was finished, the revered old man sat behind his desk silently, allowing me a moment to digest the news before he continued. The breeze was slightly ruffling his long white beard, but he ignored it as he watched me, his eyes now open to take in my expression.

"Good . . .” he says in his old, gruff voice, approving of my answer. “Now go, or else you’ll miss the afternoon tea . . . Knowing Sasakibe, he will definitely have plenty of black tea to go around.”

I held back a smirk at that, knowing the man wouldn't be happy with me if he saw it. It was a First Division tradition for everyone to gather in the mess hall for the monthly tea, a tradition the Captain Commander instituted when he first came to his position. It was meant to celebrate the beauty of Japanese tea, but ever since the lieutenant came back from the Living World after witnessing some Western culture, the tea has been reduced to a battle of East vs. West.

The fact that a lot of the division members have taken a liking to the Western teas was the only reason the commander hasn’t banned them yet.

"Yes sir." I say as I stood up, bowing once more before making my exit. As I moved through the hallways, I couldn’t help but smile at how busy the place looked, with shinigami moving and talking back and forth through the hallways, all kept in pristine condition thanks to Lieutenant Sasakibe's efforts.

As the division's resident neat freak, tidiness is very much his forte.

I said some quick hellos to a few of my fellow co-workers before I reached my office at the end of the hall. As I open my door, I was hit with the smell of the ocean coming from within. It was a familiar one, a scent I can never forget, even if I was hit with a case of sudden amnesia.

The scent was coming from the blonde-haired woman dressed in robes in shades of blue and black sitting by my window: my zanpakuto, Mizukiri. She was reading a book of poems from the Living World, a gift courtesy of a certain long-haired samurai. Senbonzakura always seemed to pick up a new one for her whenever his master was sent there for a mission, and it was something she really appreciated, even if she won't admit it.

"Mizukiri?"

"Yes master?" she answers as she looked up from her novel, her sea blue eyes looking brighter in the sunlight.

"Can you keep things in order here for a little bit while I’m gone? Just for a few, maybe twenty minutes at best . . . I have to deliver a message to the Sixth Division." I say as I spot a stack of awaiting paperwork standing tall at my desk. It wasn’t there when I left, which meant I had my work cut out for me once I returned.

"Hmm, you look a little troubled about this task . . . Is it about Rukia by chance?" she asks as she gets up from her seat.

"Yes. . . Unfortunately," I say, my flat tone conveying how much I did not like the current situation.

"I understand. . . I'll make sure things stay in check while you're gone. I’ll even save you some tea if you do take too long, well, if you want me to."

“That would be great . . .” and with a thankful nod, I take my leave, flash stepping out of the barracks in the direction of the Sixth. The trip was a short one, the breeze hitting my shoulders and rustling my hair as I moved. It was nice to feel it on my exposed skin, to feel the speed and freedom that the shunpo provided whenever I used it.

Unlike most shinigami, I chose to wear the uniform that provided no sleeves, a style choice favored by those from the 9th Division. I had served there for a time after being transferred out of the Second to take the Fourth Seat position there, and I liked their uniforms so much I decided to wear their uniform even after I transferred to the First . . . I just tend to wear a more form-fitting version compared to the rest of them.

"Hey Fukudome!"

As soon as I walked through the Sixth’s gates, the division’s lieutenant was right off to my left greeting me, as if he had been already there waiting for me. Chimpette and Snakey, the spirits that make up his zanpakuto Zabimaru, were standing right behind him.

Well, Chimpette was.

Snakey was on her shoulder, knocked out cold.

"Hello Renji, Chimpette. I would extend the same greeting to Snakey, but I don’t want to ask why he’s unconscious because the answer will probably involve him annoying Chimpette somehow . . ."

The woman's quick nod sealed it for me. "Anyway, is your captain in?"

"Yep, he's been in his office all day. I would ask if you were here to drop off some paperwork, but that would simply be a dumb question," he mumbles as he looks down at my empty hands. “Since that option is dead on arrival, I’ll try another guess . . . Here to drop off a message?”

"Indeed, I am," I answer him. "I'm here with some rather urgent news and I need to see Captain Kuchiki immediately."

"I see," He said as his eyebrows - I think those are his eyebrows - furrowed together. The fact that his tattoos and eyebrows blend together so seamlessly has always confused me. "Well then, follow me please. Chimpette, you stay here and finish patrol."

"Right." responds the woman in green fur as she walked off, the little boy on her shoulder only starting to come to.

I follow him into the barracks to see that his division looked very much like my own: busy to the brim with shinigami doing whatever tasks they were assigned to do. The captain's office was toward the back of the building, so that left me plenty of time to acknowledge the shinigami that managed to say hi to me as I passed them by.

The Sixth may be known for being one of the strictest divisions when it comes to their conduct - Byakuya was a stickler for upholding the rules at all times - but it was nice to see how personable the people can actually be once you managed to say a few words to them.

How Renji - who's known for being quite a troublemaker if you push him far enough - survived this long in the division, let alone as the lieutenant, is a mystery.

After walking down a long hallway decorated with photos of notable members of the Sixth Division, including Byakuya's grandfather and father, the previous captain and lieutenant, respectively, we reached the door that led to the shared office of the captain and lieutenant. His spiritual pressure was calm and unflinching, quite a change from the fiery and irritable state it used to be in when we were children. I could also sense Senbonzakura inside, but his reiatsu seemed a little more amused than his master’s, I wonder why . . .

"Captain!" Renji calls as he taps his knuckles on the wooden surface. "Third Seat Fukudome of the First division is here with an urgent message."

He doesn’t answer immediately, leaving us both to awkwardly wait a moment before he finally spoke. "Come in."

“Well that didn’t take long,” I hear Renji mumble under his breath, annoyance present in his eyes as he took hold of the doorknob. I knew that Byakuya and Renji have their share of differences, but it was amusing to see just how much they can get under each other’s skin.

He moves aside so that I could enter first, leading me to come face-to-face with my eldest friend. He had pushed his paperwork aside, his hands folded on top of his desk, his gaze was bordering on expectant, but after he hears what I have to say, he’ll wish that I had come to him with better news.

Knowing him, he’ll do his duty as a captain, but as a brother, this is likely the hardest task he’ll ever do.

* * *

 

**_Byakuya's_ ** _**POV**_

I was halfway through my paperwork when my lieutenant knocked on the door with his announcement, the sudden noise making me mess up the last kanji on my signature. The muffled noise that came immediately afterward was likely my zanpakuto holding back his laughter at my slight mistake.

A quick glare set him straight immediately.

Putting the document aside, I ordered my lieutenant to come in, and I was greeted with my oldest friend's stoic face as soon as the door was opened.

Suddenly, I have the feeling I'm not going to like this news one bit.

"Third Seat Fukudome,” I say in greeting, her head going down in a slight nod in return. “What is this urgent message you have come to deliver?”

"My division has finally gotten word of the whereabouts of your sister Rukia Kuchiki." she says with not a hint of emotion in her voice. Even though I was pleased to hear this, when she gets emotionless, it’s never good news for anyone.

"WHAT? RUKIA'S BEEN FOUND?! THAT'S GREAT NEWS!"

It was moments like this where I wonder why I chose Renji Abarai to be my lieutenant.

"Abarai, please control yourself."

"Sorry for speaking out of turn captain. . . I guess I couldn't help myself."

 _At least he had the audacity to look embarrassed about his slip-up_. "Please continue, Lady Fukudome."

"Well, Onmitsikudō personnel have located Rukia in Karakura Town, the area she was originally assigned to. Apparently, she’s been living in an apartment above of a doctor's clinic."

"Go on, milady." I say as the hint of trouble appears on her face. It could be because of the news she was sharing with us, or because she has noticed Renji giving her a beady look from the corner of her eyes, his impatience betraying him as it started to show on his face.

"Well, they have reported that they cannot sense a hint of Rukia's spiritual pressure, even though they say she is alive and well. Physically, she’s fine, but from a spiritual perspective, she comes off as human more than a soul reaper."

"She comes off more as a human than a shinigami?" I ask, perplexed by her news.

"Indeed."

"How the fuck is that even possible?!"

"Renji! Mind your language!"

He gives me a stunned glance before realization dawns on him, now looking apologetic as he turned to Mina. "Sorry captain. Sorry Minata . . ."

"I did not mind Renji,” Minata is probably one of the few noblewomen within the Soul Society who wouldn’t blush in embarrassment or scream bloody murder at such use of crass language in her presence. She had used it quite a lot when we were younger, and then again, Mina is not like most noblewoman in general. “And the answer to your question is quite simple . . . She transferred her powers."

My eyes widened as the sentence sunk in, and the implications behind such a thing.

Renji was too busy doing what appears to be a face palm to notice the sudden change of emotion on my face, something I was grateful for. I understand I’m not the most expressive person in the world, and I haven’t been for quite some time - something Mina likes to remind me about on occasion - but I prefer it that way.

Bad things tend to happen when I get too . . . _expressive_.

Who knows how others would react if I acted out of character for someone in my position? I know my elders wouldn't be pleased. They've shown their displeasure quite a few times before, and they won’t hesitate to do so now.

"Master?" I hear Senbonzakura ask. I knew my reaction wasn't a normal one for me and hearing my spirit's concern put my thoughts back into focus, back on the issue at hand.

"I'm fine." I answer my zanpakuto’s concern in a tone that I hope would end the topic right there. Judging from the acceptance I could feel from the samurai spirit, it did the trick. "She transferred her powers . . . Who did she transfer her powers too?"

"A human boy named Ichigo Kurosaki. Apparently, he already had the ability to see ghosts and hollows before the two first encountered each other.”

"So, he had possessed some spiritual awareness . . . I see." I respond flatly, my mind already going through different ways to kill and torture this Kurosaki for taking my sister's powers.

_"Master, she said Rukia transferred her powers to the boy, which means she possibly had a choice in the matter. The boy possibly never took her powers away in a forceful manner."_

_"He could have declined them Senbonzakura."_

"Captain Kuchiki?"

"Yes?" I ask, her voice interrupting my thoughts.

"The Omnitsikudō reported that Rukia-san's powers were not forcibly taken away." Her words somehow mirrored Senbonzakura's, as if she had heard our mental conversation without either of us knowing.

That wasn't possible though; her grandmother was the psychic, not her.

"What do you mean?" asks Renji as he finally removes his face from the floor. It would likely need polishing later.

"Rukia's powers weren't taken by force . . . She willingly gave them up."

I swear it became so quiet in my office that I could easily hear that barbarian's hair bells whistle in the wind all the way at the 11th division barracks.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!" asks Renji, his emotions finally imploding in on him.

"Renji, leave my office," I said flatly, already tired of my second's outbursts. “You may come back once you’ve calmed yourself.”

Renji stopped himself in time to hear what I commanded him to do. He gave me another one of his apologetic looks, but I could see the irritation within his eyes at being so coldly dismissed. My attention was back on Minata after he left the room, her face looking quite bemused as she looked at me.

"I'm sorry about my lieutenant's outbursts, Minata. He will be reprimanded the next time I see him." I say with a slight hint of sincerity in my voice that I knew only she could detect.

"It's no problem Byakuya, and considering Renji's shared history with Rukia, I kinda expected it. . . All I have left to say is that you and Lieutenant Abarai have been ordered to go to the Living World to bring her back here to stand trial for her actions, as commanded by the Central 46. . . If anyone stands in your way, you have permission to do anything within your power to ensure the mission is a success." she says as the emotion starts to return to her gaze. Unlike Rukia's violet eyes, Minata's were a deep, dark purple, almost like amethysts.

For one fleeting moment, those amethyst eyes conveyed how she exactly felt over this entire situation.

She absolutely hated it.

"We will leave immediately." I did not like this development either, but what must be done, must be done.

"I'll tell the Captain-Commander." she says to me with a slight bow as I stand up, returning the gesture in kind.

"Please, have my lieutenant return to my office on your way out, Mina."

"Sure . . . Should I tell the servants at the manor that you may be a little late returning from work?"

“Please do . . .” and with that, she walks out the door to look for my loudmouth of a lieutenant.

"Master, this whole situation with Rukia-san and her losing her powers does not add up to me."

"I do not understand it either, but we should not question orders, Senbonzakura. We have been given a mission and it is our job to carry it out."

"I understand, but Rukia's your sister, regardless if she’s only adopted. We both know what the punishment is for a shinigami who gives away their powers."

Death. There was no alternative.

Fifty years ago, I had promised my late wife Hisana that I would find her sister, protect her, and accept her as my sister. Now that I have learned of Rukia's crime, and knowing the severity of its punishment, my duty to my late wife and my duties as a shinigami of the Gotei 13 have reached a crossroads.

A crossroad that I was hoping I would never have to face.

"Nevertheless Senbonzakura, we have a mission to complete, regardless of family ties." I say as I lift my head.

"I understand . . . I don’t fully agree with it, but I understand."

“I didn’t expect you to,” I say in kind as I hear footsteps coming up the hallway. “Abarai . . .”

"Captain?" calls my lieutenant as he appears in the doorway, the monkey woman and the snake boy that make up his zanpakuto standing right behind him.

"Get ready Renji. We leave for Karakura Town in one hour."

"Yes sir . . . Chimpette, Snakey, let's get our things."

"Yes sir, Mr. Pineapple, sir!" they said in unison, their comment instantly making a vein appear on Abarai’s forehead.

"Okay, one: stop talking in unison. You both know I hate that. Two: don't call me a pineapple!"

"Your hair says otherwise."

The monkey woman and snake boy laugh like children as a horrified expression appears on Renji's face, now realizing where that remark came from as his eyes moved toward the samurai beside me.

"Enough of this nonsense. Go and get ready or else I will leave for the Living World without you." I exclaim without raising my voice, now feeling the start of a nagging headache in my skull.

As my vice-captain and his zanpakuto make their exit, I turn to Senbonzakura. "Sometimes I wonder why I chose Renji to be my lieutenant."

"It's because he was highly recommended by his former division. Wasn’t that obvious?" he answers, quite bluntly to be precise.

"I was being sarcastic."

"Oh"


	2. Worry for a Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank SpiritedRanger for the insightful review that was left on the last chapter. I’ve actually written close to sixty chapters for this story, but it never occurred to me to put in a flashback till now - that was a big brain fart on my part - but I guess that’s what comments are for right? Also, as for the zanpakutos and how they’re in human form . . . you’ll just have to read below to find out a little more on the matter. Enjoy!

**New Character Introduced**

Kurai Sekkai - The zanpakuto of Satsuki Fukudome, Minata’s mother. His name means ‘dark incision’ (kurai - dark. sekkai - incision). His classification is known by only his master, and those who have the unfortunate opportunity of facing her in battle.

* * *

**_Many years ago . . ._ **

_The Soul Society was quiet, almost serene even, as the moon disappeared to allow the sun to usher in a new dawn. Shinigami that had been on night patrol retreated to their barracks to get some much-needed shut eye, walking into divisions that were just coming alive with activity._

_In the more opulent districts of the Seireitei, many of the lavish homes that dominated the landscape remained silent, with many of its residents - save a few servants - still sleeping soundly in their beds and futons._

_The only home that showed any large signs of life at the moment was the large manor located in one of the few districts that could say it had one of the Four Great Noble families living within its borders. The Kuchiki Manor was abuzz with activity, as servants started to prepare for the festivities that would happen later in the day, while a few unlucky elders were tasked with waking up early to oversee their work. They needed to make sure nothing went off without a hitch._

_It’s not every day you get to celebrate an heir’s birthday._

_Speaking of said heir, the boy in question was still snoozing in his futon when the sounds of a rather loud servant running down the hallway disturbed him from his slumber. His eyelids fluttered open, slate grey eyes staring in the direction of the door, a scowl forming on his lips._

_“I should have known I wouldn’t be able to sleep in on my birthday,” he mumbled as he heard another set of footsteps coming his way, softer than the previous set that passed by. Recognizing the spiritual pressure to be that of his grandfather’s, Byakuya quickly got out of bed and managed to make his hair look somewhat decent before a familiar knock came from the door. “Yes?”_

_The door slid open, revealing the tall, stoic form of Ginrei Kuchiki standing on the other side. The current head of the Kuchiki Clan, dressed in his full shinigami uniform, stepped into the room, his face unreadable as he faced his beloved grandson. Byakuya was starting to think that something was wrong until his grandfather broke out one of his rare smiles, a sight he only allowed a certain few to see. “Good morning grandfather.”_

_“Good morning Byakuya,” said the man as the boy lifted his head up from his bow. “I hope I haven’t interrupted anything.”_

_“You haven’t. I just woke up actually.” Byakuya quietly admitted as he realized that his grandfather was the only one at the door. “Is father coming with you to work today?”_

_“No, he will not. Your father’s illness came back overnight,” said Ginrei, his words putting a damper on his grandson’s mood. “He’s not coughing like the last time, but the doctor does recommend that he stay in bed, at least for today.”_

_“I see . . .” Byakuya mumbled, disappointed at the news. “Then he likely will not be there for the party.”_

_“Unfortunately, no. He may not be there in person, but he will be with you in spirit,” said Ginrei as he looked around his grandson’s room. “He does expect you to pay a visit before the day is up though.”_

_“I’ll visit him before the party begins . . . It’s best I get ready for training then.”_

_“Oh no you don’t,” said Ginrei, clamping down on Byakuya’s shoulder to prevent him from moving any further. “I am impressed at the enthusiasm you show towards your training Byakuya, but it won’t hurt you to skip a day, especially on a special one such as this.”_

_“Hmm, I guess you’re right Grandfather,” Byakuya mumbled as he brought a hand to his chin. “But that leaves me with a lot less to do from now until the party I’m sure the rest of the family is preparing for.”_

_“True; outside of training, you always seemed to struggle keeping yourself busy when you are left to your own devices,” Ginrei couldn’t help but tease, his rare grin getting bigger at the sight of Byakuya’s scowl. “Don’t worry. I have just the remedy for it. . . After you get ready, you’ll find that remedy in the main foyer.”_

_Byakuya was about to ask him what it could possibly be, but Ginrei flash stepped out of the room before he could even get a syllable out. It was a common thing for the clan leader to do that when he didn’t want to explain himself to his grandson, mainly because he thought it was better for Byakuya to figure things out on his own rather than ask him to explain._

_Being used to his grandfather’s behavior, Byakuya simply shook his head before getting ready for the day. Remembering Ginrei’s instructions, he made his way to the foyer, sensing that two figures were in there waiting patiently for him. Both figures felt quite familiar to him, one more so than the other, and when he turned the corner to enter the room, he couldn’t help but let a small smirk show on his face at who he saw._

_“Hm, so you’re supposed to be helping me get through the day before my party begins huh?”  Byakuya asked, leaning against the doorframe as the girl approached. She was around his age, dressed in a light green yukata, her amethyst-colored eyes staring holes at him as she crossed her arms. “I thought you didn’t wake up this early Mina?”_

_“I try not to, but you know, even a highborn noble can’t get everything they want, not when they have their attentive elders looking out for them,” said Minata Fukudome as she let out a rather unladylike yawn. Byakuya knew if any of his own elders saw her doing that, they would have reprimanded her easily. The long-standing familiarity between their two families allowed them that much. “And why did you sound so disappointed about me accompanying you throughout your big day hm? Would you rather have Yoruichi join you instead?”_

_“As if I want that damned were-cat in my presence!” Byakuya practically blew up as he cursed the purple-haired woman’s existence. “As for your earlier question, I just found out from my grandfather that my father is ill again. The doctor wants him to stay in bed all day.”_

_“Which means he won’t be there for your party later . . . Are you going to see him still?”_

_“I plan to before the party is supposed to start. You are free to come along Minata, as well as your guard over there.” mumbled the Kuchiki scion as he looked over her shoulder to stare at the other individual in the foyer._

_The man was very tall - past 6’5 easily - and dressed in a long-sleeved black robe that stopped just above his ankles, revealing the pitch-black sandals he wore. The black robe was simple in design, buttoned in the front and patterned with red and silver leaves towards the end. The robe’s collar was large enough to cover most of his face, leaving his bright red eyes the only notable feature to be seen on his face. Completing his look was the matching black hat that was slightly pointed at the top with a wide brim wrapped around it, giving him quite a mysterious air that frightened some who were unlucky enough to meet him._

_“That’s okay. Kurai Sekkai has to return to my mother’s side anyway. Isn’t that right Kurai?” Minata asked the man, who simply nodded once in admission. “You’re dismissed Kurai. I’ll be fine here.”_

_“Yes milady,” said the man, his voice a deep, raspy whisper that slightly chilled Byakuya’s skin. With a quick use of flash step, the man was gone, not making a sound as he left._

_“Byakuya, why do you always look unsettled whenever my mom’s zanpakuto spirit is around?”_

_“Because he honestly gives me the creeps,” was Byakuya’s blunt reply as he glared at Minata’s smirking face. “Like, how does your sweet, sarcastic mother have a dark and creepy guy in a robe for a zanpakuto spirit?”_

_“Considering that zanpakuto are supposed to be our unique reflections of our very own souls, I guess you can say my mother has a much darker soul than you think,” was Mina’s simple reply. “And you are so lucky Kurai did not hear you say that. Trust me, he can get a whole lot worse if he gets pissed . . . And p.s., not everyone thinks he’s creepy. Only you do. Most just think he’s an aloof loner that’s hard to speak with.”_

_“Still won’t change my mind.”_

_“Of course, it won’t. You are the one that said that it’s spirits like Kurai Sekkai that make you wish that zanpakuto spirits only came out when you’re trying to manifest your bankai like they used to, and not when they want to like they do these days.”_

_“I’m still trying to figure out how this trend with the zanpakutos first started.”_

_“Your family is in charge of collecting and compiling the Soul Society’s historical archives. I’m sure one of those dusty old tomes hold the answer,” said Mina, her tone flippant as she walked past Byakuya. Before he could say anything though, his stomach growled loudly, the sound echoing through the foyer, reminding him that he still hadn’t eaten any breakfast. “How about we look AFTER we get some food in you?”_

_“I’m not spending my birthday in the archives, but breakfast doesn’t sound like a bad idea,” Byakuya conceded as he followed Mina deeper into his home. “Anyway, what did you get me for my birthday?”_

_“Wouldn’t you like to know . . . You’ll just have to wait till after the party starts. Don’t worry it’s not cat themed.”_

_“Good . . . I wouldn’t like it if it was.”_

_“Still mad about Yoruichi beating you in that race three days ago huh?”_

_“Is it that obvious?”_

_“Yep . . .”_

_“I was hoping you wouldn’t say that.”_

* * *

 

**_Minata's POV_ **

After a whole day's worth of errands and paperwork, I was happy to finally be flash stepping toward the Kuchiki Manor, the place I’ve considered my home away from home ever since I was a young girl mourning the untimely death of my parents. The full moon was already up high in the night sky, but I couldn't enjoy the mesmerizing sight like I usually did.

My thoughts couldn’t help but be somewhere else. Today has simply been that _eventful_.

"Master . . . Mina, are you all right?"

"I'm fine Mizukiri. I'm just concerned about Byakuya, that's all." I say as we reached the manor's front gate, the Kuchiki seal shining bright in the moonlight.

"Captain Kuchiki is a wise nobleman and a good captain. I'm sure he'll pull through this. With ease, I don’t think so, but he will pull through this." I hear her say as the guards greet us with nods before proceeding to open the doors.

"You may be right Kiri, but something about this whole situation doesn't sit well with me." I mumble as we walk toward the main building. "Maybe a good night's rest will help me clear my thoughts."

"Which is something you can get at your own family's manor, yet here we are at Byakuya's place. Tell me again: Why do you continue to live here with him instead of returning to the Fukudome mansion to live with the rest of your family? You’re certainly old enough to return."

I mull over her words as we step into the foyer, where I switch my heeled sandals out for a pair of comfy indoor slippers. I never liked the slippers that was standard for the uniform, so I decided that the heeled sandals would serve as a nice alternative. Nobody minded, not even the Captain Commander, and he's always been a stickler when it comes to the propriety of one's uniform.

"As if you didn’t know already Kiri." I mumble. "Both mine and Byakuya's parents died within the same year, and mine’s were through much more violent means. Grief is not the easiest emotion to overcome, let alone handle, and - of course - we had our own ways of showing it.”

“For Byakuya, it was like the life went out of him. He became a living statue, mechanical in his movements, not really showing that much emotion in general . . . It was like he became the perfect little lord, but without a hint of emotion. He was just a shell of himself.”

“Me, on the other hand, rebelled whenever I could. I didn’t care what others thought of me. I cared about my family’s standing even less. I was just sinking in a sea of sadness and depression, hidden under all the unruly acts I did. I was ready to combust, but I could never really pull the trigger.”

“Yes, I remember that . . .” Kiri mumbles, her tone getting somber at the memory. “Your Inner World was not the easiest place to live in during that time. Typhoons, hurricanes, I even remember living through a couple of blizzards that could have killed a normal person if they had to experience it. Of course, as I am a part of you, I ended up turning out fine, but you really made my heart race whenever you were in one of your really bad swings.”

“I’m sorry I put you through all that Mizukiri, but when grief overtakes you, it can keep you in its clutches for a very long while,” I mumble as we started moving down the hallway. “The elders thought that after our period of mourning, we would get back to our normal routines, but unfortunately for them, that’s not how grief works. My self-destructive rut became depressive, and Byakuya wasn’t doing much better. . . My grandmother and Byakuya's grandfather, of course, didn’t want us to wallow in our grief forever, so they came together to figure out a solution.”

“And thus, you became a ward of the Kuchiki family,” Mizukiri sagely admits, her eyes looking distant. “I’m sure you were quite happy to find out you and Byakuya were becoming roommates, right?”

“You and I both know how exactly I reacted when I found out grandmother was sending me here to stay,” I say, embarrassed at the memory. “I cursed her out for crying out loud! I said so many rude things to her I thought she was going to disown me then and there.”

"But she didn’t. She took your outburst in stride, calmly explained to you her reasoning behind such a decision, and then sent you on your merry way,” Kiri cheekily adds, her amusement bordering on irritating. “And look at the two of you now. You helped each other out of your funks and now you’re functional members of society once again!”

"The close contact did help, I guess . . ." I concede as we turned the corner. "All I know for sure is that my nana had me moved here a week after my parents' funeral to ‘aid me’ in my grief. I became a ward under Ginrei’s supervision, and in time, we both managed to get back to our regular selves, mostly, I think. Byakuya isn’t as emotional as he used to be after all . . . As for why I still live here, I guess everyone was so comfortable with me being here that no one bothered to even suggest I move back home."

"Hmm . . . I wonder why," suspicion was laced within my zanpakuto’s voice, and I could easily guess why. Considering the Kuchiki elders are eager to see Byakuya remarry again, it wouldn’t be hard to think that I was a prime candidate for him to marry, especially since I know him so well already.

"It’s not hard to think of why Mizukiri.”

"Well, you got me there. A union between members of two of the most prosperous families in the entire land would certainly make headlines, produce very powerful babies, and incite the envy of some of the more power-hungry families."

"That’s all very likely . . .”

When we reached my room, Mizukiri instantly makes a beeline for the bookcase to switch out her poetry while I walked over to the vanity, taking off my headpiece along the way.

Every member of my clan wore a headpiece, a long-standing tradition similar to that of the Kuchiki's tradition for wearing kenseikans. The thing is, we weren’t that _restrictive_ in headwear creativity like the Kuchikis were. Everyone had a choice in what kind of headpiece they wanted to wear to signify their status within the clan, and it has led to some crazy pieces hitting our ranks over the centuries.

However: two rules had to be followed. The first was that all the headpieces must be black, and the second was that the headpieces must incorporate a jewel that was the same color as the wearer's eyes. Everything else was free game.

When it was my time to pick out my headpiece, I was inspired by the hair caps worn by the nobility of medieval Europe after reading an interesting book about that era that somehow managed to make it into the family library.

I made an excellent choice, in my honest opinion. It was useful in keeping my hair out of my face, especially in times of a fight.

After unpinning the cap from my tresses, I picked up my brush and started brushing it through my long, black curly hair, a rarity in my family.

"Someone's coming."

The sentence is barely out of Mizukiri’s mouth when I look up to see a shadowy figure standing in front of our door. The silhouette was so familiar I couldn’t mistake it for anyone else.

"You can come in Ginrei. You don't need to knock." I say as I put down my brush.

"You, my dear, have a great sense of perception." he tells me as he slides the door open. He had been retired for years now, but he still looked like he could still serve as the Captain of the Sixth if he was needed to.

"You can blame Mizukiri for giving you away this time."

"Technically, since she's a part of your soul, you are actually the one I should have the blame pinned on." he says, giving me a knowing look.

"Touché"

"Minata, where is my grandson?" he suddenly asks. "We're supposed to have our weekly tea tonight."

"I guess the servants failed to alert you about the latest development then . . . He's off on a mission to the Living World with his lieutenant. He won't be back for a while."

"It's about Rukia, isn't it?" he asks, concern showing in his eyes.

"Yes, unfortunately . . . Let's just say he received some unfortunate news that may come into conflict with his morals in the coming days."

"I see." he says as he brushes his moustache with his fingers. "Would you mind joining me for tea in his place? I would like the company."

"Sure." I say as I stand up.

"How difficult do you think this 'conflict' will be for my grandson Mina?"

"I don't know, to be honest. I know that he made certain promises in the past, and now I think those promises will make him question who he truly keeps his word to. He may feel trapped, with no way of getting out of his predicament."

"I was afraid you were going to say that," he says with a smirk as he turns to walk out the door. "You know how Byakuya can get when he’s in those situations. Situations where he can’t come to a firm decision has never been his forte. The stress will be there, but knowing him, he won't let it show on his face."

"Well isn't that the truth." I tell him as I sense no movement coming from my zanpakuto. "Aren't you coming Mizukiri?

"I'll sit this one out. You go on ahead without me." she says without lifting her head from her book. It must have been a damn interesting one if she was going to refuse one of her favorite past times to continue it uninterrupted.

"Suit yourself." I say as I follow Ginrei to the tea room, just as an unsettling thought creeps into my brain.

" _Byakuya, how exactly are you going to deal with this?"_

* * *

 

**_Byakuya's POV_ **

Karakura Town

So, this is the town that is home to that ignoramus Ichigo Kurosaki, the one who calls himself a substitute shinigami.

As if I would ever acknowledge that.

"How far are we from their location?" I ask my lieutenant as we flash stepped over the rooftops. The redhead looks down at the device connecting us with the Soul Society, a little machine made to resemble a human cell phone. An ingenious idea by the 12th Division, and one of the better ones that somehow managed to find its way out of the sea of convoluted ideas that flood those barracks every day.

"We're only five minutes away captain." he says as he looks up at me. I can see the slight remorse in his eyes, but it fell away as resolve showed on his face. He was hiding his emotions, but I already knew the more we continued with this mission, the more he was dreading its completion.

I knew that Renji and Rukia had been close friends since they were very young. They survived the Rukongai and attended the Shinigami Academy together, well, until I pulled Rukia out when I finally found her that is. As her oldest and closest friend, of course it was going to be a hard mission for him. His situation made me wonder how things would be if Minata and I were in his and Rukia’s positions instead, and every time I thought about it, I didn’t like the results one bit.

The fact that he has kept his composure so far is commendable.

"Abarai, are you going to have your emotions cloud your judgment during this mission?" I bluntly ask as we near the clinic.

"No sir!" he tells me immediately, a hint of defiance in his voice. I’m sure he was offended by my question, but it had to be asked.

I may not have liked his tone, but I accepted his answer easily enough.

As we flash step with our zanpakuto at our sides, a sudden pinging noise fills the quiet atmosphere. It was coming from the device in Abarai’s hands, his brows furrowing as he looked at the screen.

"Abarai?"

"Rukia's signal is moving," he says, surprise evident in his voice. "Why would she move now. She’s just making herself more of a target . . . Eh, easier to catch and arrest her I guess."

"I guess the family reunion is going to happen sooner than I thought."

I ignore Senbonzakura’s words as we come to a stop on the rooftop of an office building. After a few more jumps, we stopped on the roof of a small residence on the side of a wide, empty road, but my sister was still nowhere to be seen.

"Abarai?"

"She should be making her way here any moment now." he says, just as we hear the sound of feet running along the pavement. With a quick turn of my head, I finally see my sister for the first time in months. She was dressed casually, a long, short-sleeved dress covering her small frame as she ran down the street, a backpack draped across her back.

"LONG TIME NO SEE RUKIA!"

My lieutenant’s yell has the desired effect. She immediately stops dead in her tracks, looking up with startled eyes to see us standing above her.

Before she could even react, Renji leaps down from his perch, followed quickly by his zanpakuto. Senbonzakura and I follow right after him, landing right behind her, cornering her like the prisoner she’s soon to become.

"Renji? Brother?" she greets us, her body tense and ready to spring if the opening showed itself.

It wasn’t.

"Rukia." I say, all the emotion I could have mustered in this situation, gone from my voice.

"What? No hello?" asks the snake half of Renji's Zabimaru. “We came down here for you after all!”

"We're not here for casual chit chat, Snakey. We've got a job to do." says the other half, her tone dismissive as she knocks the boy on the head with a closed fist.

"I know why you are here." says Rukia as she changes her stance, effectively going on the defensive.

"Then you know you're not going to win this fight. How can you? Last time I checked, you gave all your powers to a human!" returns Renji as he places his hand on the hilt of his sword. “I thought you had better sense than that! Like really? A freaking HUMAN!”

"Renji I-" she says, but quickly stops once she looks to our right. Renji looks too and barely steps out of the way of a blue arrow coming in his direction.

Well that’s not a sight you see every day.

"What the hell was that?" he asks, the surprise showing on his face as he glared at the street from the rooftop we were previously standing on.

"That would be me, shinigami."

The voice came from a scrawny looking teenage boy with glasses standing across the street, dressed in white clothes while holding a blue bow emanating spiritual energy.

"Uryu!" yells Rukia. “Get away!”

"A Quincy?" I hear my Chimpette mumble, voicing my thoughts for me. "I thought they all died out."

"A few still remain here in the Living World." I answer her without turning my head away from the teenage Quincy. “And it seems one of them has decided to reveal himself to us.”

"Let me handle him Captain!" I hear Renji yell from his elevated perch. He turns to his zanpakuto. "Let's go!"

"Right!" his spirits answer before returning back to their sword form, becoming their master's blade once again.

"Howl, Zabimaru!" he yells as he leaps, his sword transforming into its whip-like state that was his shikai.

"Run Uryu! You can't fight him! You won't win!" Rukia yells at the raven-haired teen, but to no avail. The teen does not run, instead choosing to raise his bow to fire what looked to be a hundred arrows at my lieutenant, which Renji only narrowly dodges.

"Shit!" yells Renji as he lands on the ground.

The Quincy boy fires another round, but Abarai seems to have figured out what he was planning. He flash steps out of the way and soon appears behind the teenager's back.

"Oh no!" the boy yells as he turns around, but he is already too late to block the attack; Renji dealing him a devastating blow across his torso. Blood erupts from the boys mouth, the crimson substance splattering across the pavement as he falls to his knees, and then to the ground.

"One down and-"

"RUKIA! URYU!" yells a new voice, cutting into Renji's sentence before he had a chance to, likely, gloat.

"Damn! Now who the hell could that be?!" Abarai groans as he turns to the direction Rukia ran from to see a new form appears from the shadows. He was wearing the standard shinigami attire, but there were three things about him that struck me as surprising.

The first was the obnoxiously large zanpakuto strapped to his back.

The second was his obscenely bright orange hair.

And the third was the striking resemblance to a man who has been long dead for years.

"Ichigo!" yells Rukia, and I instantly realize who he was.

"Ichigo?" asks my lieutenant as he continues to watch the orange-haired teen.

"Yeah, the name is Ichigo, Ichigo Kurosaki. You've got a problem with that?!" he asks in a stubborn tone, one fitting for someone of his age.

So, this was the boy Rukia willingly gave her powers to.

The boy who has been running around this city destroying Hollows at every turn.

The boy who calls himself a substitute shinigami.

_“Of course I have a problem with that_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the sake of the story, Ginrei Kuchiki is ALIVE! Do you hear me? ALIVEEEEE! It was never confirmed if he was deceased or not in canon, so for the sake of this story, he's alive.


	3. A Friendly Conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya and Minata have a convo over tea.

**_Byakuya's POV_ **

The Kuchiki Manor, a home that has seen 27 past generations of my family walk through its hallowed halls, was only mere feet away from me now, the towering structure a welcoming reprieve after the day I have just experienced.

My home has seen many memories, that of love, life, loyalty, achievement, and everything in between, good and bad. As the 28th head of the clan, one of my duties is to oversee the property and look out for the well-being of all those who reside within it. It’s both a privilege and a burden, but I would never give it away if given the chance.

Unfortunately, I'm a bit too prideful to do so.

I have been put through immense physical and mental training my entire life In order to be fully prepared for the position I am in now, a position I'm greatly honored to have. It may be my birthright, and it's a hard task to maintain, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

It is early in the morning - just shy of 3 a.m. to be exact - when Senbonzakura and I start walking through the hallways to get to the tea room. I wasn't in the mood to sleep just yet, so I figured a nice cup of tea would do me some good.

As we neared the tea room, I saw that the door was slightly open. A dim candle stood in the middle of the table, right next to a kettle, already unlit, but with a faint plume of smoke slowly billowing from its spigot. A shadow sat near it, and when it turned, I couldn’t help but notice the movement of its curly hair.

"Master?"

“You can go on to bed, Senbonzakura. I'll sleep after I have a quick cup of tea."

"Very well then. I’ll see you tomorrow," he answers, bowing before moving down the hallway. Turning back to the tea chamber, I walk in to find Mina seated at the table, her hands clasped around her cup as she brought it to her lips.

"Morning Byakuya," she tells me as she looks up in my direction. “Had a good night?”

"It could have been worse . . . Shouldn't you be sleeping right now?"

"I should, but I can’t find the will to at the moment. Something told me that you may need some company tonight." she tells me, a smirk playing on her lips as I took the seat opposite of her. "Would you like some tea?"

"I see your ‘intuition’ has struck again, and yes. I would like some tea. Cherry blossom, if you may?"

She nods, smiling before throwing a few cherry blossom petals into the kettle and placing it on the re-lit fire. We wait in silence as the mixture brews inside the small pot, and the quiet reprieve was indeed helpful.

It gave me some time to go over the nagging thoughts that has been picking at me ever since I returned from the Living World.

"Your grandfather missed you this afternoon." I hear Minata say, her voice pulling me out of my thoughts as she pours out my cup before handing it to me.

"Really?"

"Yes, you were supposed to have your afternoon tea with him yesterday, remember?"

"Unfortunately, I completely forgot about that." I mumble, shaking my head at my memory lapse. Due to how busy my schedule can be, I didn't have much free time to spend in my grandfather’s company. We always set aside one day per week for our weekly tea, and I was loathed to miss a day, and now I have to make it up to him for missing this one.

"Don't worry. I stood in for you. He didn't mind your absence, and I don't blame you for forgetting. . . You must have had a lot on your mind."

"I still do."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"Where should I even start?" I ask, letting my confusion show for the first time in a long time.

"How about you start by telling me about your mission. What happened exactly?" Judging from the slightly pleading look in her eyes, I knew I wasn’t going to make my exit without telling her something beforehand. Sighing in defeat, I concede to my friend's wish.

"Okay, I'll tell you, Mina. I'll give you the whole story."

* * *

 

**_Flashback_ **

_"Yeah, my name is Ichigo. Ichigo Kurosaki. You got a problem with that_ _?!" the orange-haired teenager asks with a stubborn disposition. Renji's expression turns from annoyance to full on rage as he turned to the teen, a growl threatening to rip from his throat._

_"A problem? Of course, I got a problem with that! You're the one that took Rukia's powers!"_

_My lieutenant, in all his sudden rage, lunges forward, zanpakuto in hand, ready to strike the "substitute shinigami" down wh_ _ere he stood. The teen instinctively deflects the attack and moves out the way to counter, wielding his large blade with ease. Renji easily blocks the incoming hit and tries to strike again, but the teen deflects the attack just the same._

_"_ _He may be quite untrained, but that orange-haired boy must possess a large amount of spiritual pressure, if his zanpakuto is anything to go by."_

_"_ _Quite untrained indeed . . . He has the power, but he has no refinement with it. It’s a terrible combination." I say, watching as Renji's glasses broke apart, revealing the bloody gash the boy dealt to his forehead._

_"Master?" I barely hear_ _my zanpakuto say as I leap into action. From the onset, the boy wielded his blade like it was a club more than it was a sword, and it was painfully apparent that he had no true connection with his zanpakuto._

_It made it all the easier to snap the blade in half, right before he could use it to strike my lieutenant down. It may have looked strong at face value, but it was brittle on the inside, a sad reflection of the soul who wielded it._

_"What the-?" the boy asks_ _before I struck him in the chest, blood spurting to the ground in one fell swoop._

_"Is there something wrong?" I ask my lieutenant as he slowly st_ _ood up, a stunned expression marring his face as he turned to look at the boy._

_"No, nothing's wrong captain_ _,” he tells me as he kept his eyes on the boy. “You didn't need to trouble yourself with this misfit. I could have handled him myself."_

_"Of course, you could." I say_ _, giving him my signature stare. Footsteps heading in our direction remind me that we are not alone, and I turn around in time to see my sister running to the ryoka boy's side, nothing else but shock covering her face._

_"After all that has happened just now, you still run to his side_ _. . ."_

_Her body goes stiff, likely stunned by my statement, or the fact that I was actually talking to her. She turns to me in silence but doesn’t voice any opinions that she may have racing through her head._

_I don't wait for her to respond, ins_ _tead voicing a thought that had suddenly occurred to me when I saw the boy's face for the first time._

_"It's understandable that you_ _show some care for the boy, since he looks so similar to your old teacher."_

_I was about to say more when I felt_ _the hard tug of the bottom of my pant leg. Without looking down, I knew that the ryoka wasn't done with me just yet._

_He was proving to be quite the stubborn one._

_"Let go."_

_"You should look at the people you're talking to first before ordering commands." he spits out_ _, defiant. I look down to see the matching look on his face, challenging in its suicidal absurdity. I was mulling over the idea of kicking him in the face to get him to let me go when his hand was knocked away from my clothes, by Rukia herself._

_Well that came as a surprise._

_"You don't know when to give up, do you Ichigo?" she asks, he_ _r head turned away from me. I couldn’t see the expression she was giving him, but I had the decent inclination to believe her glare was as cold as her voice right now._

_"Rukia!?" the shock o_ _n his face was palpable, as if I was watching a feral lion suddenly turn into a startled cat with just one kick._

_"Just stand down." she_ _growls before turning to me. "I'm ready to go brother. I’m ready to face justice, but I ask you only this one thing in return."_

_The boy's eyes widen at this sudden development. I was sur_ _prised at her admission. I expected more of a fight from her but having her come back willingly would save time. I nod, unwilling to voice my answer._

_"Spare Ichigo's life."_

_She looks me right in the eye, practically daring me to go against her despite being the one at a disadvantage, but her request is difficult to abide by._

_On one_ _hand, I want to kill this boy for taking my sister's powers and using them for his own purposes, and not even use them well._

_On the other hand,_ _the sadness is there within her steely gaze; pleading for me to strike this boy down, to effectively look the other way, something that I never do on a mission._

_But her gaze was so much like Hisana's - so eerily similar - that I almost found myself looking away to glare at the boy. After a second look, I realized that the wound I dealt him would suffice. Eventually, if he doesn’t get the necessary medical attention soon, he would bleed out, and I wouldn't have to worry about him anymore._

_"Very well then. . . Renji, open the Senkaimon. It's time to go We_ _’re done here." I say as I finally tore my gaze away from my sister’s. "Besides, with the wound I dealt him, he should die within a half hour. If he survives, then his shinigami powers will be gone, and we won’t have to worry about him anymore"_

_Renji follows my orders with no complaint, opening the Senkaimon as his zanpakuto returns to its humanoid form. The three of them then walk into through the doorway, disappearing into the light quickly as Senbonzakura follows after them._

_"Let's go Rukia." I say without looking at her as I walk through the gate myself_ _. Most would simply wait until the prisoner walked into the Senkaimon ahead of them before following afterward, keeping their eyes on the captive at all times per procedure, but I knew well that she wouldn’t disobey my order, not after I’ve given in to her request._

_As I make my way through the Dangai, I hear the gate close behind me. Risking_ _the smallest of glances, I move my head far enough to see Rukia following behind me, just as I had predicted._

_And as we neared the entrance_ _into Soul Society, I could not help but have the sinking feeling that from this point on, everything will just go downhill from here._

* * *

"Where is Rukia now?"

"In my division’s barracks. She’s been placed in one of the cells where she’ll await her trial." I say, my shoulders slumping just a tad. From the look of her eyes, I knew Mina caught me in the act.

"I see, and I thought Kuchiki clan leaders had perfect posture." she mumbles, raising an eyebrow as I straightened back my form.

"I guess it is good that I had my error happen in front of you then," I say. “Knowing my elders, they would not hesitate to criticize my actions if they feel that I have went out of line. Not outright of course, but just enough to make sure the point has been made.”

"Ah, the ways of nobility, I guess. The heirs prepare to lead, the heads actually lead, and the elders criticize those that lead." she says as she sips the last of her tea. "

"Well isn’t that the truth . . .”

"It’s our circle of life, so to speak. The usual progression for people like us. You’re already on the second stage while I’m stuck on first, waiting for my grandmother to eventually abdicate from her role. . . Eventually, give or take a few centuries, we will both be back here, old, withered, and grey, criticizing those that lead our clans over cups of ginseng and chai.”

“Don’t you mean _I_ will be old, withered, and grey?” I ask, challenging. “Last time I checked, your family does not age like the rest of us do?”

“We don’t. We defy the laws of aging, and we don’t even know how we do it in the first place. That knowledge has been lost for centuries . . . Of course, you won’t find us complaining, and for those that curse my family for this little aspect of our heritage, I say screw them. They’ll just add to their stress lines even more.”

“What do you think is the reason for your family aging so slowly?”

“I haven’t thought much on it, but if I had to make a guess, I would have to say that we simply don’t _stress_ as much compared to the other clans,” Minata says like it is the simplest thing in the world. “The other clans are always focused on their position in society and how they can maintain it. That kind of thinking isn’t as profound in my family.”

“That’s a reasonable assessment. My family is all about maintaining their roles in society. Yours, not so much . . .” Her words almost got me to smirk a little, her kind of insight so unlike the kind I would get if I was talking to any other noble lady, including those within my family.

“Which only means your family is just going to look older than they should appear Byakuya. How can you handle looking at all that grey?”

She has come a long way from her prank-loving tomboy days, where she would sarcastically comment and criticize everything at every turn, especially if she was in a foul mood, the elders being her most frequent victims. She just managed to utilize her sarcasm in a much more formalized, yet frank form, and yet it still gets me to react in a way that I wouldn’t react with anyone else.

“I’ve managed . . . I see your sarcastic barbs are as strong as ever.”

"They never stopped . . . Let me ask you this: are you still suppressing the stubborn hothead that I know is still living somewhere inside you? You may have beaten him down by training to be the best clan leader your family has ever seen, but he's still there, waiting to come back to the surface, whether you like it or not," Minata answers in return. "I can feel it."

"If you say so." I say, finishing my cup of tea. I may look calm now, but sometimes her words ring true, even if they haven’t come to fruition just yet.

"Hmm . . . We have changed a lot over the years, haven't we?" she asks as she turns her head to the side, giving me a good look of her profile. Besides the small scar that lined the base of her neck - courtesy of a training exercise gone awry during her time in the Second division - her skin was practically flawless, even glowing in the candlelight.

"Indeed, we have. . .” I ask, a sudden thought occuring to me in my inner musings. I’m sure she wasn’t expecting it - I did not expect myself to ask this myself - but in a sudden burst of curiosity, I was willing to take a shot. “Mina, how come you haven’t moved back to your home?”

"Byakuya, do you want me to move back home? Well, if that is what you wish . . ."

"N-no, I don't mind you staying here,” The words are out of my mouth before I can even think about them. “I like your company. Your better than most of my family at least."

"It’s nice to be appreciated, and did you just stutter Byakuya?"

"No, I did not . . . I was simply caught off guard by your return question."

"So was I, but unlike you, I was able to keep a straight face."

"Well aren't you witty?" I mumble, unafraid to openly scowl at her. She returns it with a grin, so smug with her comebacks, but once it’s gone, her eyes take on a different look, one I was all too familiar with over the years.

“Go ahead and ask what you want to ask Mina. . . I won’t bite.”

"Good to know . . . Anyway, how are you feeling Byakuya?"

"With everything that has been happening with Rukia, I would have to say that confusion is the dominant emotion right now," I say in response. “There are many questions I want to ask.”

"You're wondering why Rukia willingly gave away her powers to that Kurosaki boy, aren't you?"

"Yes. That happens to be the main one."

"Hm, I do not have the answers for you Byakuya, but I have the feeling that everything will come to light soon enough."

“Yes, I have that feeling too.” I nod, knowing that once Minata got one of her "feelings", something was bound to happen, and usually, it happened soon.

"Thanks for talking with me Mina. . . And thank you for the tea."

"You're welcome. Good night, well good morning, actually." she says, smiling as she made her exit, leaving me alone to the cloudy river that was my current train of thought. The sun would start to rise in a few hours, but I still couldn’t think about sleep now, not when there were so many questions left unanswered.

There was one thing that I was certain of though, no matter how much I wanted to ignore the dread growing in my stomach.

Something tells me that boy will be back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You just got to love witty banter.


	4. Maturity in Annoyance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minata deals with some of Byakuya's elders, while Byakuya not only delivers some bad news, but he gets some unwanted visitors to boot.

**_Minata's POV_ **

"Master! Master . . . It’s time to wake up Ms. Sleeping Beauty!"

As soon as I heard the sound of her voice, I wanted to slap my hand over my zanpakuto’s mouth to shut her up. She sounded way too eager for my liking, and I wasn’t ready to put up with that right now.

However, I didn’t want to be rude and start my day on a bad note, so I opened my eyes to find Mizukiri staring at me from the other side of the room, still dressed in her light blue nightgown. Most of the time she slept in her sword form, but on the nights she didn’t want to do that, she pulled out a spare futon and slept in another part of the room.

It was weird to see her so wide awake so early in the day, since she was less of a morning person than I was. However, there had to be a reason for it.

There’s always one for everything, right?

"Mizukiri, you do know we have the day off today, right? You can sleep in if you want to, and trust me, I want to." I tell her as I scratch at the itch on the back of my neck.

"I know, I know, but you remember what a day off means for you right? It’s ‘Visit Your Aunt, Nana, and All Your Relatives Day!’." she announces, walking over to the vanity to fix her bed head. “Now get up and get ready! We have quite a day ahead of ourselves!”

"You’re such an eager beaver. Granted, it’s justified since it’s always nice to visit the family, but to tell you the truth, it honestly slipped my mind this time around.”

“Considering what’s been going on these past few days with Rukia, I can’t blame you.”

“Yeah, I can’t blame myself either. . . Do you want to use the bathroom first Kiri?" I offer as I finally manage to get myself up into a sitting position.

"You can go on ahead of me. I don't mind waiting for a bit." she mumbles, her face a mask of precise focus as she pinned her hair into its usual low ponytail. I watch her reflection to see her eyes move to the blue teardrop amulet hanging around her neck. It was the same shade as her eyes, and she’s had it since she first manifested years ago.

I had an amulet of my own, but it was shaped to look like a flower with four petals with pointed edges facing each cardinal direction. It was the same shade of purple as my eyes, and I had received it when I was younger.

It was another one of my clan’s traditions. Everyone, even the men - who wore their amulets on wristbands made out of corded leather - received one, getting them in a ceremony a few years after their birth. They weren’t just stylish, they acted as inhibitor seals, stabilizing our reiatsu as we went through our development years.

They were necessary deterrents. Sometimes the reiatsu in my family could get a little haywire.

When my grandmother gave me my amulet when I was the equivalent of a two-year-old, it was placed around my neck, and I have never spent more than a day without it on my person.

“Did you speak with Byakuya during the night?" she suddenly asks, her eyes implying that she knew, but was just waiting for me to confirm it for her.

"Indeed, I did." I answer in return. "We spoke over tea . . . He's very confused Mizukiri."

"Figures. Senbonzakura mentioned it to me when he stopped by on the way to his chambers. Apparently, his confusion and inner despair is creating quite the fog in his Inner World . . . He can barely see his sakura trees anymore."

"Ooh, that's not good . . . For fifty years, Byakuya has maintained his promise to protect Rukia, a promise he made to dear Hisana right on her deathbed in fact . . . However, not even he can protect her from the law, no matter how much he tries to." I tell her.

"If he is even willing to . . . Look, on one hand, I understand that he wants to keep his promise to his dear dead wife, and yes, he has his flaws as a brother - namely he doesn’t really go out of his way to _know_ the poor girl, but in his defense, Rukia does look a lot like Hisana. She’s pretty much a younger clone . . .”

“What’s your point Kiri?” I ask, hoping that what she was saying was actually going to lead somewhere.

“My point is despite the family connection, the law is the law, no matter how much we don’t like it. Rukia has done what she has done, and now she has to face the consequences of her actions. Consequently, as someone who’s tasked with upholding the law and being an overall good, law-abiding citizen, Byakuya is going to abide by the law over anything else. It’s been practically drilled into him since birth, and that’s something that’s hard to change, even if the accused is family.”

“His duty to Soul Society’s laws and his continuing upkeep of the promise he made to Hisana are now in conflict with each other. It's a battle that he may not win, either way . . . A conflict of the heart verses a conflict of the mind. I really hate those kinds of fights," I mumble as I flop back down to my pillow. "Mizukiri, is Byakuya still here by any chance?"

"No, he and Senbonzakura left for work about an hour ago I believe. He did come by to wish you good morning and a good day before he left, but you were asleep, so I offered to take a message." she tells me, leaving the room to go off to who knows where.

After a quick shower and a good teeth cleaning, I picked out one of my simpler yukatas from my closet and got dressed. Walking out of my room, my ‘sixth’ sense instantly picks up on the spiritual pressure of two beings that were close to my current position.

So close that I couldn’t mistake it, even if I tried.

"Good morning Lady Fukudome."

I turn as soon as I heard the slightly shrill voice, my eyes finding the two beings I sensed walking toward me from a side hallway. The two - a man and a woman - were a couple of Byakuya’s many elders that lived within these halls, usually only appearing when they wanted to, not because they had to. The man was one of Byakuya’s great uncles, while the slightly younger woman happened to be one of his second cousins.

Twice or third removed, I couldn’t remember for the life of me.

"Oh, good morning Elder Kairu, Elder Hirira." I say in return greeting. "How are you today?"

“Very well. Thank you for asking.” says the male elder, watching me with his ever-present stern gaze. It’s a default look for most in this family, including some in the younger generations. “And you milady?”

"I'm doing very well." I answer, and despite all the etiquette training from my younger years, the little child in me wanted to ditch this conversation before it could get any worse. Talking with elders wasn’t always the best experience. “I was just about to head to the dining room for breakfast when you walked over.”

“Oh, we won’t keep you long my dear. We were just hoping to ask you a quick question." says Hirara, her eyes studying me through the black-rimmed glasses she wore on her wrinkled face.

"And what would that be Lady Hirara?"

"At the moment, do you think Byakuya is ready to remarry?"

The question stops me dead in my tracks. It was out of the blue, but not really unexpected. The question of Byakuya’s marriage eligibility has always been a hot topic in the social circles. Many ladies have wondered how long it will be before Byakuya announces that he was seeking out a wife, well, if he ever will again.

"Byakuya? Ready to marry again?" I ask, stunned by such a question. “And may I ask, what has brought this on?”

"My dear, I’m sure you know the reason just as much as we know it ourselves. It has been fifty years since Byakuya's first marriage, and forty-five since it ended in heartbreak. . . We have left him to mourn for his late wife for the allotted time needed of course. However, this clan still needs an heir to lead its next generation, and unfortunately, he's a long way from delivering on that particular front." says Kairu, his voice gruff as he crossed his arms over his chest. He was definitely not one for beating around the bush. “How long does he expect this family to wait until he does his duty?”

"He expects you to wait as long as it’s needed.” I tell him, my voice blunt as I stared the older man down. I was so not going to take his brand of bullshit, especially this early in the morning. “Quite frankly, what you need to do is give Byakuya his space. He’s been quite unmoved on the whole baby making front for good reason, and you and the other elders hounding him on that issue isn’t going to make him move any quicker. Truthfully, it might make him even less likely to go through with it. . .”

"Considering the recent events, finding a new Lady Kuchiki and fathering the future 29th heir of the clan must be a long way from his mind . . . He needs the time to think, and you and the rest of the elders breathing down his neck will not help him or you if you continue on this endeavor."

"I see that you are as blunt as ever, but I understand." Hirara answers, her eyes sincere, yet the rest of her face appeared highly amused. Hirara was known as one of the more sympathetic members of the Elder Council, so I knew I wouldn't have to worry about her hounding Byakuya too much. She was much more respective of a person’s boundaries.

Elder Kairu was an entirely different story.

"I do not." his reply was blunt, but it didn't deter his fellow elder in the slightest. She ended up slapping him in his shoulder, _hard_.

Did I forget to mention that Hirara was one of the more physically imposing elders?

She wasn’t imposing in actual size. She was imposing in the way she wouldn’t hesitate to slap you when she thought you were getting out of hand. 

"OUCH! Was that really necessary Hirara?!"

"Oh, don’t act like a petulant child with me! If Byakuya still needs time to himself, then we'll give him what he needs. Besides, Lady Minata is right. We wouldn't be doing him, or ourselves for that matter, any favors if we endlessly bring up the issue anyway." says Hirara as she gives me an apologetic look.

"Thank you Elder Hirara." I say, sincerely grateful for her understanding.

"You're welcome my dear. Now come along Kairu; you promised that you would help me decide which new flowers should be planted in the eastern gardens today." says the woman as she started walking past me, a small smirk playing at her lips.

"Oh joy." he replies, sounding almost like a petulant child as he followed her down the hall.

After having that interesting encounter, I continued to the dining room, well, the main one. The manor had at least three, the largest was used for family dinners that included the entire clan and other special events, which meant that it was rarely used these days. The other two were much more used, plus their smaller size led to a much more comfortable atmosphere, even when you’re dining alone.

When I entered the western dining room, Mizukiri was already there eating a muffin, already dressed for the day as she sat at the main table, a large dish of freshly baked muffins awaiting anyone that wanted one. She was in her usual outfit: long sleeved, royal blue kimono shirt, a long black skirt with a slit on its left side that gave everyone a view of her legs, which were covered in matching blue tights, and heeled sandals similar to my own. The only other notable thing about her appearance were the black rings that surrounded her eyes, like natural eye shadow.

She was a lovely maiden dressed in simple clothes, but to those that really knew her, she was as deadly as she was beautiful.

"I see you're ready to go." I say as I pick out a muffin from the plate. “How’d you get ready so quick?”

"I have my ways."

Leaving it at that, we were silent as we enjoyed our muffins, the cherry blossom trees we could see out the window being our only other company. Byakuya was always fond of those trees, going as far add a new one to the premises once another one dies.

Some might consider it a mild obsession of his, especially since his zanpakuto was practically _a walking analogy_ to them, but I saw it as a healthy hobby that added some color to his life.

"I hear the court is supposed to be making their ruling on Rukia's case today."

I stared at Kiri wide eyed at the admission, but she just continued eating her muffin as if she hadn’t shocked me with her sudden news. "Really? Already? Well that was quick, and how do you know that?"

"A couple of the elders mentioned it while they were walking past the room earlier. . . They even mentioned that Byakuya is supposed to tell Rukia the verdict himself."

So, they left the task of telling the sister her punishment to her own older brother? Central 46, you have no tact.

“Yeah, that does not sound like fun. Quite the insult to injury if you ask me . . . Despite her status, the court will not be that merciful to the poor girl."

"Considering the charges and what the punishment for each one is, I highly doubt it. The Central 46 isn’t known for being the most merciful of institutions . . . If you want to learn more, you're going to have to ask Byakuya what happened. He’s not much of a talker, but I’m sure he’ll make an exception for you. . . So, shall we be on our way then?"

"Let’s go Mizukiri, I would hate to keep my family waiting any longer than they already have to." I say as I move to the door, the blonde already following at my heels.

" _Here’s to hoping that Byakuya will even be in a talking mood once this day’s over."_

* * *

 

**_Byakuya's POV_ **

"Rukia Kuchiki, the Central 46 has found you guilty of all the charges that have been leveled against you. You have been sentenced to death, and you will be formally executed on Sokyoku Hill in a matter of days."

If I had been talking to a known criminal, one whose record was so long that not even a blind man could deny it, what I just said would have been trivial to my ears. It would have been just another day.

However, I wasn't lucky enough to be talking to a career criminal.

I was telling these words to my own sister.

I never thought I would find myself as the one tasked to say these condemning statements to her, but fate works in mysterious, terrible ways.

"I see. So, that's my fate." she says, finally turning her head to face me after staring at the wall for so long.

When I finally get a glimpse of her violet eyes, I don't see fear, sadness, defeat, or any other dramatic emotion that should afflict a person once they’re condemned to death. The ones that would make a person scream and shout in denial or hysteria, not ready to leave this world.

Instead, I see the one thing I feared to see most.

I saw acceptance.

Undeniable, unmistakable acceptance.

She was going to accept her fate, and she wouldn’t even try to put up a fight.

It’s frustrating and gut wrenching all in one.

"Is that it? No big reaction?" Renji asks, having been silent up to this point. He was now making his presence known, and it was obvious that he was not happy about the results. “No plans to fight this?! You’re just going to accept the court’s decision? Just like that?!”

"That's it. I am accepting the court’s decision . . . I broke the law; there’s no mistaking that. I need to pay for what I have done, and if my punishment is supposed to be death, then so be it." she tells us, conviction laced in her voice.

This was not what I expected from her. I thought there would be a little more fight to her, but to see her accept her fate so easily . . . It’s quite conflicting to say the least.

"Tch, whatever!" Renji grumbles, walking out the room without another word. He wanted to sound like he didn’t care, but the hint of despair and sadness within his voice proved his downfall on that front.

"Are you still thinking about that boy from the Living World?"

I didn’t mean to ask the question, but Rukia had been quite silent on him ever since she was brought back. Her silence was telling, likely for his protection. She turns to me with not a hint of emotion on her face, but her eyes were a different story, suddenly full of sadness and misery.

"You shouldn't bother trying to protect him. It’s not like he’s coming for you . . .” I state, my tone holding no emotion. “What led you to do what you did? To lead you here, in a position that will, in the end, cost you your life?”

"You’re right; he’s not coming for me, and I've accepted that . . . And as for your question, let's just say he was able to open my eyes to things that were closed off to me before."

The words are sudden and sincere, not from a scared, timid girl, but from a woman who has grown with time and experience. She has grown in the time she has been away, and I never got to see any of it with my own two eyes . . .

Her sentence will make sure I never will.

"I see." is all I say before leaving the room, leaving the last conversation I will likely have with her before her execution day comes around.

In the few years I have known her, Rukia has went from being an orphan from the Rukongai to being my little sister, but even I know that it has only been in name. I know that I swore to Hisana that I would protect Rukia and let her call me brother but letting her have the family name and giving her a roof over her head wasn’t enough.

I’ve never bothered to try to be close to her, partly because of something that even she couldn’t help. Rukia was years younger than Hisana, but she could very much be her twin. They looked so close that it was almost uncanny, and I was reminded of her so much in that first year that it was sometimes a struggle to separate them from each other.

Thank kami for Minata. She was able to fill the role that I couldn’t, acting as Rukia’s guide to all things noble in society. Rukia wasn’t quick to warm up to her like she had hoped, but their relationship was very much a good one, better than the one I’ve barely made with her, at least.

"Well, well, well, look what we got here! It's the Kuchiki princess!"

_“Oh, not today . . ._ ”

Somehow, someway, I managed to hold off the scowl that was threatening to appear on my face as soon as I heard that barbarian’s voice. Turning my head, I see 11th Division captain Kenpachi Zaraki standing on top of a nearby building, a large, bloodthirsty grin already plastered on that scarred face of his.

"How's it going Byakuya?!" he asks, not putting any meaning into his asking. "Visiting your sister huh?!"

"That is none of your business."

"Oh, come now Captain Kuchiki. We're all friends here! Aren’t we?" calls a mischievous new voice that I knew all too well.

"Captain Zaraki and I are not friends, Captain Ichimaru." I say as the white-haired captain, who always seemed to have a smile on his face, even at the worst of times, emerged from behind the taller man.

"You seem to be tenser than usual. The issue with your sister has really got you down huh?" he asks, never letting his grin falter.

"It must be! A girl from that high class of a family, now a criminal scheduled to be executed?! That must be disappointing, not to mention a black eye on the good ol’ family name, right?!" exclaims Kenpachi, his voice unnecessarily loud. "I’m sure your elders are really loving this kind of spotlight for the clan huh?!"

"Hmm, I didn't you would care. I never knew that lower class people like you two could understand the feelings of a noble." I say, turning my back on them as I made my exit.

"What's that supposed to fucking mean, huh Kuchiki!? You want to fight, because I'll give you a fight!" I hear him yell, his spiritual pressure unmistakable as it begins to rise.

"Uh oh." I hear Gin say, right before the sounds of a quick struggle hit my ears. When I finally turned back around, I couldn’t help but feel a little amused at the sight of Kenpachi tied up in white fabric, the Third Division captain holding one end of it in his hands.

"We don't need you rampaging and damaging the area, again." says Gin as he starts dragging Kenpachi away. “I don’t want to do paperwork all because you couldn’t hold yourself together now.”

"I DON'T CARE! LET ME GO SO I CAN FIGHT THE PINK LOVING BASTARD!" he continues to yell, becoming more frantic as I started moving toward my office. Maybe then I can finally have some peace and quiet . . .

"ONE MORE THING BYAKUYA!"

Against my better judgement, I turned my head.

"TELL MINATA I SAID HI!" Kenpachi yells, his sleazy smile being the last thing I see before Gin flash stepped away with him in tow.

The very thought of my eldest friend even standing next to that barbaric fiend with was something that I never want to think about, so, pushing those thoughts aside, I brace myself for another day of paperwork and training sessions.

As for Kenpachi, let’s just say that Minata will not be receiving his message anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave a comment if you like!


	5. Good Visit, Bad News

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minata goes to see the family. Byakuya takes a walk.

**New Characters Introduced**

Moka Fukudome - Minata's grandmother, the current captain of the Kido Corps, and the 27th Head of the Fukudome Clan. She became the eldest among the four heads once Ginrei abdicated in favor of his grandson, and she is also the only female of the group. She physically looks to be in her mid-fifties. However, she is very close in age to Ginrei. She’s also her clan’s resident psychic.

Chō no Seishin - Moka Fukudome's zanpakuto. Her name means ‘butterfly psyche’ (chō - butterfly, seishin - psyche). She is a wind type zanpakuto who shares her master's psychic abilities. She goes by either Chō or Rabendā (rabendā - lavender), the latter because of her lavender color scheme.

Seirin Fukudome - Minata's aunt and the second in line for the position of clan head after Minata. She is the Kido Corps lieutenant and physically looks to be in her mid-thirties when she’s actually way older than that. Her zanpakuto is Kitsune. She has the ability to find and pinpoint her opponents' weaknesses and flaws, regardless if they’re physical, mental, or emotional.

Kitsune - Seirin Fukudome's zanpakuto. Her name means fox. She is a Kido-type zanpakuto who shares her master's gift for finding weaknesses. She usually goes by Kit for short.

* * *

**Chapter 5** \- Good Visit, Bad News

**_Minata's POV_ **

"How long has it been since we've last been to the old homestead?"

"Unfortunately, it’s been quite a while since our last visit, give or take," was my quick reply as we turned onto a wide residential street, empty of people, but dotted with large homes that cost way more than what most would make in their entire lives. “Part of it was due to work of course. I can also place some of the blame purely on myself . . . I haven’t been as proactive with my visits as I should be.”

“Well, at least you are honest enough to admit your faults . . . Although I’m sure some of your relatives will be nice enough to give you some flack over your lack of _due diligence_ before we have to leave.”

"I can hear them ribbing me about it even now . . .” I mumble, pretending to hear my family talk about me in the distance as we started walking parallel to the large white and gold-painted fence that separated the clan property from the outside world.

The fence itself was pretty plain, with all the artistry going straight to the family seal that patterned it every five feet. It mainly comprised of a gladiolus guarded by zanpakutos on either side of it while an open book hovered above it it’s tallest petal. The zanpakuto represented our family’s martial history while the book represented wisdom. Rumor has it that is also represents kido alchemy, which would make sense since the family has a long history of having its members as part of the Kido Corps.

In truth, today, in the entire history of the Fukudome Clan, I’m part of the minority of family members who’ve opted to go into the 13th Divisions rather than the Kido Corps. I’m also part of the rare few that also joined the Onmitsukidō, which was a given when you join the Second these days.

As for the gladiolus itself, the flower was chosen to be the family symbol due to the many meanings it stood for. Strength of character, faithfulness, sincerity, integrity; all those words can describe my clan one way or another, with many members exemplifying those traits through the centuries. Plus, the fact that the petals look like sword blades were quite the plus if you ask me. What’s not to love about that? 

When we reached the front gate, it was - as always - manned by two guards dressed in the dark blue robes that were the uniforms for the clan guards. They were all skilled warriors, trained by my family’s master-at-arms since they were young. They all took their jobs very seriously while on duty, but once they were off the clock, they were some of the most entertaining guys to be around, always with the best stories to share and very good at keeping secrets when needed.

Even though none of them were Fukudomes by blood, they were still part of the family, and they were treated as such, much to the chagrin of the other families that treated their workers more like doormats than actual people.

"Lady Minata, Lady Mizukiri, good morning. It’s good to see you both again,” says the guard on the left; a stout, heavy-set man who wore his hair in a tight topknot. “Your grandmother has been expecting your arrival."

"I hope so. This visit has been long overdue,” I say, the both of us bowing our heads in greeting. “Would you mind opening the gate for us Sekijiro, Hiashi?"

"Certainly, my lady." answers Hiashi, offering a smile. He was taller and leaner than Sekijiro, but he was one of the younger members of the guard. It was said that he still had a lot to learn, but I think he has been doing his job amicably so far.

"Do you think we will see Akira and Kage Mai around?" Kiri is quick to ask once we were through the gate, but not after we had thanked the guards first. “It’s been a while since we’ve seen them.”

"Yes, it has been a while, but I believe you’ll just have to wait a little longer before we see my cousin and her zanpakuto again. I can’t sense their reiatsu on the premises, so they must be at work over at the Second." I say with a shrug as we walked along the stone pathway. “I hear Soi-Fon has been putting her division through hell recently with all the new training drills she’s come up with.”

"Oh yeah, and we both know whose training drills likely inspired her own,” she tells me with a smirk, enjoying the fact that she brought up a dark memory from our combined past. “You have to admit. Yoruichi put you and the little bee through absolute _hell_ to make sure you two got stronger."

"You got that right, and I think she actually _relished_ seeing us work ourselves to the bone during training . . . I still have the scars." I say, grimacing as I pushed the memories back. Even after all these years, I still respect my former sensei, and I knew she meant well during training, even if she took things a little too far.

Byakuya was always her main target when it came to her teasing and trickery. She always came out on top when they raced, and she had a penchant for stealing his hair ties when she knew he wouldn’t notice, and for her, it was all in good fun. Byakuya never saw it that way, always calling her ‘Were Cat!’ and all kinds of insults whenever she annoyed him, including some that got him in trouble with his grandfather a couple of times.

Despite the one-sided animosity, I knew it hurt Byakuya to find out that Yoruichi disappeared years ago, around the time the Soul Society was dealing with an event so shocking that it resulted in quite the changing of the guard among the captains and lieutenants once it was all over. In all the chaos that was going on, she simply vanished, with no trace left behind that could have been used to track her whereabouts.

It definitely affected Soi-Fon. She was actually decently friendly with people while we were still under her tutelage, but once she was gone, it was like something broke in the bee. Now she’s just a straight-laced soldier focused on her job, at most, cordial with people that she tolerates, grating with those that she doesn’t.

Despite her stark attitude adjustment, I was still one of the few people that she more than ‘just tolerated’. It still didn’t stop me from moving to another division when the chance appeared though.  

"The training may have been brutal at times, but look at where it has brought you! You're the Third Seat of the 1st Division, Byakuya has taken over his grandfather’s place as the head of the 6th, and Soi-Fon has taken over Yoruichi's place as the Captain of the 2nd. Wherever she is, I’m sure she’s proud of all three of you." Mizukiri adds as she looked up at the sky. “I wonder where she is now . . .”

"Probably with that mad scientist Urahara." I suggest as I walk up the three steps that led to the manor’s porch. The building was large - as a home to one of the Four Great Noble Families, how could it not - and a testament to feudal Japanese architecture, just like every other building within the neighborhood was.

Despite its traditional design, the manor has gone through its fair share of remodeling over the years, adding some more modern amenities that you would barely find anywhere else within Soul Society. It wasn’t as abundant compared to what the Oomaedas probably had in their home, but it did make living in the space comfier and more homely as time went on. “He did disappear around the same time Yoruichi did after all.”

"I thought you said that Urahara was the slightly annoying scientist while Captain Kurotsuchi was the _really_ mad one." she grumbles as she skips all the steps, jumping onto the porch with ease.

"I misspoke . . . Besides, can anyone really be madder than Captain Kurotsuchi?" I tell her as I knock on the door, hoping to get the attention of the servant that always manned the foyer.

“Urahara was mad just for taking Kurotsuchi out of the Maggots’ Nest to make him his Third Seat,” she reminds me as I stretch out my senses to see how close everyone was to our position. Most were converged around the inner parts of the building and the gardens, but one was very close, mere feet away in fact. “He unleashed him back into the world, and now he's the captain of his own division!”

“Okay, you make a very fair point.” I concede as the person closest to us moves closer. She was now right behind the door, and I could feel waves of amusement rolling off her, as if she couldn’t contain herself. 

"Mina?!”

"Yes, it's me Grandma. Can you let Mizukiri and I in now?" I ask. As soon as she slides the shoji paneling open, my grandmother envelopes me in one of her bone-crushing hugs, rocking us from side to side as I tried to match her strength with my own. I wasn’t having much luck.

Stricter nobles would call the contact indecent, but here in the Fukudome household, we couldn't care less. We were in the privacy of our own home, so why should it matter to them?

"Mina-chan, it's been so long!" her voice is cheery as she continues to squish me against her chest.

At this point, I think she may be funneling a little too much spiritual pressure in these arms of hers.

"Grandmother, you're squishing me, again!" I choke out. I think my statement only made her hug me harder, if that was even possible.

"But it has been so long my dear! I've missed you. Can you blame your dear grandmother for missing one of the few grandchildren she has? It’s not the same without you living here, even though I am a huge reason why you’re not living here in the first place." she coos, still unrelenting with her hugging, yet sounding unapologetic at the same time.

"Mama! Can you please let my niece go!? We don’t need her passing out before she even steps through the door!" snaps a new voice. Hearing that, my grandmother opens her eyes and looks at what I think is my now slightly blue face. When I finally feel her arms letting go of me, I look to see her watching me with an apologetic grimace, but her eyes still looked slightly amused.

"I'm sorry, Minata. I guess I got a little carried away, again."

"I think you mean a lot." Mizukiri answers for me, her remark actually making my grandmother blush in embarrassment.

"Do you want a hug too Mizukiri? I’m more than ready to give another one.” she remarks in return, her offer looking like it spooked my zanpakuto.

"I'm good Lady Moka-san." she exclaims, raising her hands in surrender as she started backing away.

"I guess I’ll just have to save yours for later then." says Grandma, now turning to face the new person in the room. "C'mon over Seirin! Greet your niece! Don't be rude!"

"I'm never rude. I'm sarcastic, and a bit cold at times, but I'm never rude!"

“Yes; keep telling yourself that, sweetie. . . Keep telling yourself that.”

Aunt Seirin couldn’t help but scowl at her mother for that remark, but it was gone once she turned to me. She was my mother's identical twin, and even after all these years, I still get a little ache in my heart when I see her face. I’ve gotten better over time, but Auntie was the closest physical reminder of my mother, and some things are hard to change.

After my parents' untimely deaths, my aunt cut her long hair to make it a chin length bob. She said it reminded her too much of Mom, and I couldn’t blame her for that. For her, it must have felt like she lost her other half when Ma died. They were close as twin sisters could be, the only differences being that Ma’s hair was always spikier and their eyes were different colors. Personality wise, Ma was always more outspoken than Auntie’s naturally reserved nature, but other than that, and the occasional argument here and there, they were always each other’s best friends, no matter what.

"How are you feeling, Mina?" she asks, a gentle smile crossing her face as the jewels in her hair clips shone in the light.

"A little sore, but I'll be fine." I tell her as grandma shoots me a smirk.

"Okay then; change into some indoor slippers and follows us. Tea is almost ready, and we have a lot to talk about." says Grandma, kissing my forehead before walking to the corridor, Auntie following right after her. Mizukiri and I quickly switch our footwear before following after them, catching them before they could even turn the corner.

"So, Mina, how has work been treating you?"

"Very well. Thanks for asking Grandma." I say with a smirk, but I had a feeling that it wasn’t the only thing that she wanted to ask. “Is there something else you wanted to ask me?”

"How is Byakuya coping with the whole Rukia situation?"

"SEIRIN! What have I told you about being blunt!?"

"That it will only get you nowhere unless you be nice first; if that doesn't work, then you can be as blunt as much you like," came Aunt Seirin’s tired reply, rolling her head back like any exasperated teenager would.

The lack of personal dignity was not an uncommon sight in our home. My clan was always different from the other noble families; we tended to go by the beat of our own drum more than what society dictated for us. We were definitely different when compared to Byakuya’s family though. While the Kuchiki Clan are known for being stoic and graceful in practically everything that they do, us Fukudomes were easier going and willing to let our flaws show in public, regardless of how anyone would react.

And trust me, people reacted.

We don't exactly fit into the "noble" mold.

Maybe that's why I was such a prank loving tomboy when I was younger.

"Nana Moka, Aunt Seirin, where are your zanpakuto?" I ask, finally realizing that they were not present. “I thought they would be with you.”

"Oh them? Chō and Kitsune will meet us at the tea room . . . Oh, there they are now."

Looking straight ahead, we see two women standing in front of the tea room’s open shoji doors. The first woman had long, curly, lavender-colored hair, lavender eyes, pointy ears, and an elfish face. She wore a sleeveless dark lavender kimono that only went mid-thigh and white bandages were wrapped around her shins and went up to her knees. The most noticeable feature wasn't her hair, but the small set of butterfly wings that were protruding from her back, making her look like a human-sized fairy.

The other woman had short blonde hair in a curly bob, wore an orange-red sleeveless kimono top, a black open vest, skinny black pants and tall peep toe sandals that made her taller than the lavender fairy standing right next to her. A pair of yellow fox ears with white edges poked out from her hair while a long yellow fox tail with a white tip poked out from her rear.

"Right on time Chō, Kitsune," commented Seirin as we reached the two zanpakuto spirits. “I hope you didn’t have to wait long.”

"Not really." answered Kitsune, greeting us with a wave of her hand.

"Shall we proceed inside?" asks Chō, her smile eerily like Grandma's. “We already started the fire.”

"Great! Let's go inside and talk." Grandma cheerily advises before turning to me. "I’m sure you have a lot to get off your chest."

"Grandma, you have no idea."

* * *

**_Byakuya's POV, two hours later_ **

"Is there something wrong master? You have been quiet; too quiet, even for you."

"I'm fine Senbonzakura. You don't have to worry about me so much." I tell him as we continue our walk through one of the higher-class neighborhoods of the Seireitei.

"I understand fully. However, I must remind you that as your zanpakuto spirit, one of my duties it to worry about you when you do not feel balanced within yourself."

“Thank you for the reminder.” I wasn’t in the best of moods thanks to my clouded thoughts. Believe it or not, it wasn't due to the sight of my little sister sitting in a jail cell, eerily content with her impending fate.

What was plaguing me was the very thought of Kenpachi telling me to say hi to Minata for him.

That _barbarian_ wanted me to talk to her _in his name._

There was no way in hell I would ever do such a thing for him.

He likes to act like he wants to be friends with her, but we both know it’s just a ploy to get to me. He’s wanted to fight me for years now, but I have never even entertained the thought of his challenge, which I know irritates him to no end. So, he has to try other ways to get my attention, and trying to get to Mina has always been his favorite tactic.

My friendship with Mina is well-known throughout the Seireitei by shinigami and nobles alike. We’ve known each other since we were little, practically babies even, and Kenpachi has not been the most subtle in employing his tactics. Captain Commander had to threaten him with a fighting ban on his entire division to make sure he would stop loitering around the First so much. He had been doing it for three days straight to make sure that he managed to catch Mina, but she avoided him like the plague.

Not because I asked her too. As she likes to put it, it was to refine her stealth skills, but considering it’s Kenpachi, she didn’t have to try too hard.

"Master, it seems we have walked into the neighborhood where the Fukudomes make their home?"

Looking up, I see that what Senbonzakura has said is right. I didn’t have a destination in mind when we started walking, but we managed to find ourselves near the gate that surrounded the Fukudome property.

"Indeed, we have." I respond as I continue observing the gate, a sudden sense of expectancy moving through my spine. It wasn’t long before the gate opened, revealing Minata and Mizukiri as they walked out from within.

"Is it just me or does Lady Minata look troubled?"

“It’s not just you.” I say as I see what he was talking about. As Mizukiri says goodbye to the guards, Minata was walking away with a disgruntled look on her face. Something must have happened to cause it, and I am not too sure if I want to know what it is.

"Shall we see what’s wrong?"

"Might as well . . .” I reluctantly concede, knowing full well that Senbonzakura sensed my reluctance and decided to act upon it.

I’m sure he’s smirking under his mask this very minute.

"Captain Kuchiki, Senbonzakura, I didn’t expect to see you two here." It was the first thing that passed through Mizukiri’s lips as she finally noticed our presence. Minata, who stood a few feet away, stopped as well, but she doesn't turn to us like her zanpakuto did.

"May we walk with you two for a bit?" Senbonzakura asks, his tone hopeful as he gestured to the road in front of us. My zanpakuto was usually sure of himself most of the time, but I have noticed when he encounters Mizukiri these days, he's actually shows signs of _nervousness_. It’s quite odd if you ask me. “At least let us escort you back to the manor. . .”

"That sounds like quite the nice offer. Thank you." answers the blonde, accepting my spirit’s offered arm. As the two spirits started walking ahead, I was left to walk beside the still quiet heiress following right behind them. Her silence was becoming unsettling at this point, so I took matters into my hands.

"Is there something wrong Mina?"

“Hm?” she asks, watching me warily with those beautiful purple eyes of hers. "You mean you haven't heard?"

Did I just say beautiful?

"Heard of what exactly?"

"Hell butterflies have been delivering messages to all the division captains for the past hour now. Even my grandmother received one."

"The message must be important if even the head of the Kido Corps has been included as a recipient."

"Indeed. So, you really haven't gotten word yet?" she asks, blindly turning the corner as she continues to look at me.

"I left my office early after finishing all of my paperwork for the day. I must have left before the butterfly could stop by."

"It will find you soon enough, but it's probably better if you hear the news now. It concerns Rukia."

"What is it?" I ask, foreboding worming its way into my stomach. I already had to deliver the news of my sister’s impending death right to her face. What else could make that worse?

"Byakuya, Rukia execution will happen sooner than expected. It's been moved up."

Well, that does it.


	6. Tea Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for tea!

**_Byakuya's POV_ **

_“Byakuya, Rukia’s execution will happen sooner than expected.”_

Her words were like an ice pick to the chest, a sudden shock to my system that was enough to rattle weaker men. Luckily for myself, I made sure to train myself to the point that I couldn’t be considered a weak man by others, but I knew a discussion like this could not continue on the street where a passing ear could hear it, especially in an affluent one such as this one.

Taking Minata’s hand in mine - which undoubtedly made her raise some eyebrows - I flash step the both of us toward my manor, stopping when we were just a few feet away from the gate. Our zanpakuto appear immediately afterward, both curious at my sudden actions.

“I’m sorry that my action was so sudden, but I believed that what we are about to discuss was better in a more private setting,” I reason before she had a chance to speak, guiding her toward the gate with a hand upon her back. “Now then, Rukia’s execution . . . Is it really happening earlier than planned?”

"Indeed; the Central 46 has decided to have it a week earlier than scheduled. However, it’s rumored that they may move the date up even further if necessary." she tells me as we walked onto my property, our zanpakutos falling in right behind us.

"What reason would they have for doing that?!" I ask, my steely outburst startling one of the resident gardeners tending the shrubbery.

"Apparently, they believe that the people she allied with during her time in the Living World will come to rescue her from her fate once they hear about it. . . They want to make sure that there will be nothing for them to rescue when they arrive. A very callous move, if you ask me, but who are we to judge?"

The image of that ryoka boy that tried to stop me that night starts to appear in my mind as I let Minata's words slowly sink in.

"So, judging from your words, it appears that Ichigo Kurosaki did not die from his wounds as I had hoped." I say as we stop by one of the koi ponds.

"Not at all . . . Apparently, after you and Renji took Rukia into custody and came back to the Soul Society, Kisuke Urahara emerged, found Kurosaki, and tended to his wounds before disappearing without a trace. . . At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up helping the boy hone his remaining skills."

"A man like that should have never been allowed to escape like he did. That mad scientist will always remain a thorn in the Soul Society's side if he continues to remain free." I say, a new question already forming in my mind.

"Mina, how exactly did you learn of this information? I thought the high-ranking members of the Second Division and the Onmitsukido were the only ones privy to this."

"Well, I may no longer be a member of 2nd Division, and a high ranking one at that, but I still have my connections my dear lord." she says with a smirk.

I wouldn’t argue against her on that one.

"I’ll take your word for it." I finally say. "I'm still slightly amazed that Captain Soi-Fon allowed you to take the position as the First Division's third seat, even though you were already serving in the same role for the Second."

"Captain Soi-Fon has her reasons for letting me go. Only time will tell if she'll actually say them because I do not know myself." she tells me as she starts moving to the building.

"Hmm, since we are on the subject of positions in one’s division, is it really true that Soi-Fon wanted you to serve as her lieutenant?" I asked, curious to know her answer. My question may have been a little out of the blue, but I have been curious about it in the past.

Might as well get my answer now.

"It's quite true, actually,” she finally concedes as we passed the threshold. “However, things didn’t work out in her favor, and Oomaeda ended up being the lieutenant instead of me. I’m sure she wants to switch him out for someone else - and Oomaeda does not make it easy for himself with his known tendency for acting like a coward at times - but the rules do not make it easy for positions to change."

"Now isn’t that the truth . . .” I whisper as we switch to our indoor slippers. There were certain individuals that made me want to change their rankings within the division, and even a couple that I wanted to kick out of the barracks entirely. However, the strict rules that dictated how the divisions operated made it hard to demote individuals for petty reasons.

Now, I wouldn’t go that far to actually do that if it was allowed unless there was a very valid reason for it, but I admit, I would be sorely tempted to do so if my resistance to petty temptations wasn’t so strong.

"If I remember correctly, the rule is that as long as a lieutenant of any division is healthy, ready, and able to perform their duties for his or her division, then the lieutenant can remain in their role. Unless the lieutenant has died for any reason or has lost their powers, then he or she is to remain in their role for the rest of their lives unless promoted to captaincy." she tells me as we walked down the hallway. “It’s a fair rule, but I don’t think it took into account the level of _competency_ of said individuals.”

"That is a fair point to make,” I say as we turned the corner. “If that rule was weakened, we would be seeing quite a number of turnovers as a result.”

"Including Abarai?” she asks, her tone challenging.

“He has his moments, but none that would lead me to dispatch him as my lieutenant.”

“I see . . . It seems that Abarai has started to grow on you after all.” she mumbles as we near the tea room.

"It’s a fair assessment to make, but in my opinion, you would make for an excellent lieutenant Lady Minata."

"Why thank you Senbonzakura. I appreciate that."

Her response, and the smug smirk I knew was adorning my zanpakuto’s face underneath his mask, was enough to get a bemused look to appear on my face as we finally reached the tea room. It was Minata herself who slid the door open, collective surprise crossing all of our faces as my grandfather sat quietly inside.

"Grandfather, I did not expect you to be in here."

"Ah Byakuya, everyone, come in. I was hoping to have a do over of our missed weekly tea, if you don't mind?" says the elder as he pours out four cups of cherry blossom tea.

"Of course, Grandfather . . . I was hoping we could make that date up anyway." I say as we all take our seats, me sitting across from him.

"It seems you have a lot weighing on your mind, my dear boy. A nice conversation over tea should help with that . . . So, how has your day been?"

"Hmm, slightly eventful." I respond after taking a quiet sip.

"So, you've heard the news about Rukia then?" I did not expect him to know about this and judging from the smug look that was gracing his features, he expected this. “I may have retired from my captaincy, but as a former captain, I am still allowed the courtesy of a Hell’s Butterfly gracing my presence every once in a while.”

"Hmm, that does make sense," I say as I notice Minata giving me a slight glance. “I did not hear the news straight from one of the butterflies. Minata told me about it after we ran into her as she was leaving her family’s property.”

"Hmm, I figured Moka would be told about this as well. Her division is the one that releases the seal that frees the Sōkyoku for executions, though I doubt she or her lieutenant will be there to oversee the process themselves. . . The Kido Corps leadership’s absence at notable events is as infamous as the 11th Division being known as the fighting division.”

“That’s true, but in their defense, most of the notable events you speak of are strictly the business of the 13 divisions. Why should they be a part of something they have no connection to?”

“That is a fair point to make Minata,” my grandfather concedes as he looks into his cup. “The timing seems suspicious, don't you think? They set Rukia's execution date at a specific time, only to change it in less than a few days . . .”

"They say their reasoning for moving up the date is because they think a rescue party from the Human World will come for her." Mizukiri adds, as Senbonzakura looks at her cup in confusion. It was empty, which does make one wonder how she finished the practically scalding brew so quickly without anyone noticing.

"That is an understandable assessment Mizukiri . . . Before she was arrested, Rukia was stationed in the Living World for a number of weeks. She was bound to meet some humans that would notice her spiritual pressure. They're not uncommon."

"Grandfather, do you really think that a rescue party will come here to Soul Society and rescue Rukia from her fate?" I ask, slightly curious.

"It's possible Byakuya, as long as they’re that driven and know the right people, that is." he says with a knowing smirk, and the image of the ryoka and that mad scientist appear in my head once again.

"Even if they do find a way to reach the Seireitei, they will face many challenges in their path."

"The Dangai, the barrier around the Seireitei, and the many shinigami that walk through the Seireitei streets, just to name a few." says Senbonzakura, adding to Minata’s thought as he placed his empty cup on the table.

"Senbonzakura, how in the Seireitei did you drink that without taking off your mask?"

"I have my ways Mizukiri. Unfortunately for you, that piece of information is for me to know and for you to find out." he says while staring straight ahead, probably with a pompous look hidden under his mask.

“Are you sure you want to go down that route?” she asks, mild irritation lacing her tone as she glared at him. “I have my ways of getting information out of you.”

“You can try, but I will not break.” he tells her, which only earns him an eager smirk in return. Next thing we all know, my zanpakuto lets out a screech of bloody murder, clutching his stinging arm as Mizukiri watches him with an ecstatic grin, her hand flowing with electricity. “YOU SHOCKED ME WOMAN!”

“I know,” she tells him, completely unapologetic. “I told you I have my ways. What you felt was one of them.”

“So, you want to get your answers by _shocking_ me?!”

“When you share your master’s ability for manipulating the elements to your will, you got to use it to your advantage,” she tells him, rather smug with her response. “Remember, you opened yourself up to this when you refused to answer my question. You share just as much of the blame here as I do. Plus, you technically add to your pain by wearing that armor - _highly conductive_ armor, might I add.”

“I hate to say it Senbonzakura, but Mizukiri does make a good point.” I concede, holding back the smirk that was threatening to show as the samurai looks at me. His mask was molded after the fierce stoicism of an oni, but I could feel the waves of betrayal through our connection as he continued to glare.

"It could be said that you share some blame for this as well Byakuya,” my grandfather adds, instantly bursting my amused bubble. “Your zanpakutos are a part of your soul. They tend to show your traits a little more extremely. Just the same, they reflect the traits that you don’t want to personally show yourself. Senbonzakura is simply emulating your old childish nature, while Mizukiri emulates the side of Minata that would always get mad when things didn’t go her way."

"Oh, the memories . . ." Minata mumbles into her cup, though not well enough to hide the sarcasm in her tone. “I remember them like it was yesterday.”

"I still blame you for a number of the bad ones by the way." I say, my tone blunt as I finish my tea. Yoruichi will always be the pain in my side that caused most of my troubles when I was younger, but Minata came a reasonable second.

"Me?" she asks, managing to look a little surprised at my insinuation, though it’s probably just for show. "Some of those incidences were your own fault Byakuya."

"I will admit some of them were of my own making, but still you were always relentless when you decided to pull a prank on me. . . The ice bath one was especially heinous.”

"That was a favorite of mine, and I only did it after you had that incident with the firecrackers meant for one of your great uncle’s birthday party. . . Also, in my defense, you were asking for most of them with the way you impulsively acted. . . Short fuse much?”

"His temper was one of the worst ones this family has seen in recent memory.”

“Grandfather, who’s side are you on?”

“The side of the truth my good grandson . . . The side of the truth.”

“Can that really be considered a viable answer for the context of this conversation?” I couldn’t help but ask as I looked around the table.

“Eh, I’ll accept it.” Mina concedes as she finishes her cup.

“Me too.” comes Mizukiri’s quick response as she pours herself another cup of the now-lukewarm brew.

“To be fair, your grandfather is not wrong master.” my zanpakuto adds, securing my position in the minority.

“You have to admit it Byakuya. You were practically unbearable when your temper got the best of you.” Minata adds, leaning her head just enough that I got a view of her profile.

Was her skin always that flawless?

. . . And here I go again with these weird thoughts of mine.

"How so?" I ask, as I try to push my wayward thoughts aside.

"Hmm, let me list them for you," she says, raising her right hand. "There were the times you fell for my pranks, Yoruichi always taking your hair tie, Yoruichi always beating you in Flash Step races, Captain Ukitake always treating you like a child, and Captain Kyoraku always saying you were a brat . . . Need I say more?"

"She's got you there."

"Must you say that Senbonzakura?" I mumble, the irritation apparent in my tone as my grandfather tries to hide his chuckle behind his hand.

"Let me think . . . yes."

"Senbonzakura, you talk too much."

"I know, but remember, I inherited my impulsiveness from you,” he reminds me as he turns in my direction. “You are partially at fault for this.”

“Oh my . . . this is getting too good.” I could hear Mizukiri whisper, both she and her master watching the two of us with eager eyes as we continued our combative banter.

“I’m sure the elders would have a field day with this if they were around to witness it.” Grandfather adds, his statement acting as both a kidding joke and a warning all in the same breath. Before I could even react, a sharp knock on the door stops me in my tracks, silencing the room in an instant.

"Enter."

"I am sorry to interrupt.” says the servant after sliding the door open, revealing that she held a small letter with the Gotei 13 insignia on the front. “A message just arrived from the Captain Commander’s desk.”

The man hands the letter over to Mina before acknowledging the rest of us and taking his leave. We wait for her as she reads it, her widening eyes as she made her way toward the bottom.

"What does the scroll say master?" asks Mizukiri, her face now a concerned mask not unlike my own.

"An illegal Senkaimon opened in the Rukongai a few hours ago."

Her announcement causes our zanpakuto to look at each other in disbelief and grandfather to bring a hand to his chin in deep thought. I kept myself calm, waiting to hear what else the letter had to say before adding my input.

"Who emerged from the Seikamon?" asks Senbonzakura, voicing our combined curiosity.

"A small group from the Living World; Karakura Town to be exact." says Minata as she places the scroll on the table, free to anyone who wanted to see the details for themselves.

"Who is among them?" Grandfather asks as he eyes Minata curiously. “Anyone we may possibly know or may have heard about?”

"Somewhat . . . They’re all teenagers accompanied by a black cat that can somehow talk like a normal person. Now where have we heard that one before hm?” she asks, knowing full well that we all knew the answer to that one.  “Accompanying the cat is a tall dark-skinned male, a young, unassuming-looking girl, a boy that appears to be a Quincy, well, judging from the white garb he was wearing, and . . ."

"And?" I ask. “Who else is there?”

"The same boy you and Renji encountered back in the Living World. Somehow, he has his shinigami powers again."

"He probably took them from another Soul Reaper." I say in disgust. “. . . That boy has no discipline.”

"Sorry to burst your bubble Byakuya, but it appears that that’s not the case.”

"Mina, you don't mean...?"

"Indeed Byakuya. It appears that the powers this Ichigo boy now has is a result of his own training. It seems that he is a natural Soul Reaper."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Leave a comment if you like!


	7. Help and Assisstance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minata is placed in Byakuya's shoes and Byakuya finds Renji after his battle with Ichigo.

**_Minata's POV_ **

A few days.

It has been a few days since the ryokas invaded the Soul Society. They’ve kept a low profile so far, staying hidden from the increased shinigami presence that’s been posted in the streets since they first infiltrated the barrier. It’s impressive that they’ve come so far, even evading some of the better trackers in the divisions. I've even went out myself with a few squads, but we still have yet to find any of them. Hmm, this means they're very much aware of who they could possibly face. Considering they were likely working with Urahara before coming here, I wouldn't put it past them.

Eventually though, they will come out of the woodwork. It’s all a matter of _when_.

As I walk through my division’s courtyard, many thoughts pass through my head, but one stands out more than all the others. 

Why?

Why would these humans go this far for Rukia?

They've only known her for a few weeks, but they have come here to save her like they have known her for a lifetime, even the Quincy, one of our natural enemies.

In truth, it’s actually quite touching to see this kind of determination, to see such willingness to put one’s life on the line for someone they - very likely - care about. Those humans are doing something that I believe Byakuya wishes he could do.

Defy the customs and laws of the Soul Society for the sake of saving someone close to him.

With his status as both the head of the Kuchiki Clan and the Captain of the Sixth Division, it would be considered absolute blasphemy for someone like him to defy the Soul Society's long-standing rules.

I’m sure the elders in his family would all simultaneously have heart attacks if he did such a thing. It’s also likely that the other families - beside my own, more or less - would have an absolute field day if this ever happened. The Kuchiki and Fukudome clans are two of the top families in the Seireitei for a reason, and the position comes with as many enemies as it does friends and allies.

But back to Byakuya, I know he is hurting inside. What’s been happening in recent days is a problem that he can't simply solve with a yes or no answer. It has so many implications, and not all of them are good.

Now that I think about it, maybe it is a good thing that the ryokas have come to save Rukia from her fate. Better yet, I bet it somehow gives Byakuya hope, even if he won't admit it himself.

It would take a lot of arm twisting to get him to admit such a thing. Hell, it’s hard enough to get him to admit that his Seaweed Ambassador isn’t his best idea in the world.

How the hell he came up with such a thing is beyond me.  

"Third Seat Fukudome! Lady Fukudome! Do you have a minute?!"

"Hm?!" I say, broken free from my thoughts by the sudden voice. I turn to see Lieutenant Kira of the Third Division and Lieutenant Hinamori of the Fifth Division running over, one looking slightly more out of breath than the other. Their zanpakutos, Wabisuke and Tobiume, were following right behind them, though Wabisuke - as always - doesn’t look like he wanted to be here in the first place.

"Lieutenant Kira, Lieutenant Hinamori, what may I do for you two?"

"Do you know where Captain Kuchiki is?" Hinamori asks, taking in a few deep breaths.

"Captain Kuchiki is still in the emergency captains' meeting in the main hall. They probably won't be out for some time. . . Why do you ask?”

"Renji left the lieutenant's meeting in a hurry. After we found out that the ryoka boy took a hostage, he left without us noticing till it was too late. . . We believe he left to confront him."

“And knowing him, he’ll confront the boy with his blade, not his words.” I conclude as Kira pulls out a familiar object from his pocket. I originally thought it was Izuru’s badge, but it was already tied around his left arm. Even though I had a feeling that I knew who the badge belonged to, I checked the insignia, just to make sure.

Of course, as soon as I got a good look at the badge, the camellia of the Sixth Division was staring me straight in the face.

"That is troubling to see," I say, crossing my arms. “From what you said earlier about Abarai’s abrupt exit from your meeting, it’s likely he’s moving on his own accord. If Renji had taken his badge with him, he could at least get away with saying that he was acting under his authority as a lieutenant, but by abandoning it, he does put himself at a higher risk of legal backlash . . . Captain Kuchiki likely won’t be happy with this once he hears about it.”

"What do you suggest we should do Third Seat Fukudome?"

"Hinamori?" I ask, my voice matching how Kira look: confused, surprised, and a little unsure of the brunette’s intentions.

"I know my question seems a little odd, but we are trying to keep Captain Kuchiki in mind in our decision, and since you are the one person active in the Gotei 13 that has known him long enough to have a good idea on what he may possibly decide, we thought you may have an idea on what we should do."

"So, to remedy your situation, you have decided to put me in Captain Kuchiki's shoes, hoping that I could come up with the answer that he would likely come up with himself. Pretty much: should you go assist him with his endeavor or let him do this on his own." I say as I weigh the options.

"Yeah, that's basically it," says Kira, a nervous laugh passing by his lips. ". . . I hope you don’t mind us putting you in this position Fukudome-san."

"Don't worry. I don’t mind it one bit. I’m actually surprised that this doesn’t happen to me more often, if you can believe that . . . Anyway, Captain Kuchiki is a man known for abiding the law in any way he can. However, he believes that if someone is going to willingly take on a task, that person should not hesitate to do it, even if they decide to go through with it alone."

"So, he would probably just let Renji go on and face the ryoka by himself?" Tobiume asked from her master's side, hiding her mouth behind her sleeve.

"Indeed. If Renji succeeds, I can’t see Captain Kuchiki disciplining him too harshly for his actions. It will be an entirely different story if he ends up failing though." I say, actually fearing for Renji if the second scenario does happen. "I think you two should go and observe him though, just in case he may actually need some assistance. . . Plus, I have a good feeling Renji's not going to leave that battle unscathed."

"Knowing that idiot, it's a guarantee that he'll get himself hurt."

"Wabisuke, you didn’t need to say that!" says Kira, surprisingly loud with his outburst.

"It's okay. Considering his name literally means ‘The Wretched One’, I’m not even remotely surprised by his comment." I tell him, adding a small smile just in case my words were not enough to reassure him.

"We'll just be on our way then,” he mumbles as he stretches Renji's badge out to me. "Do you mind giving Captain Kuchiki his lieutenant’s badge for us? The quicker we leave, the quicker we can get to Renji after all."

"I'll make sure he gets it once his meeting is over." I say as I take the badge.

"Thank you, Mina-chan. Oh, and see you at the next SWA meeting!"  Momo exclaims before flash stepping away, Tobiume, Wabisuke, and Izuru following right behind her.

After watching them leave, I make my way toward the main hall. By the time I reached the captains’ meeting room, most of the captains were already leaving. When I looked into the room, only Byakuya, Captain Hitsugaya, Captain Ukitake, and strangely enough, Captain Zaraki were the only ones remaining inside. Fortunately for me, Captain Ukitake was the first to notice my presence.

"Ahh Minata-chan, how are you today?” the white-haired man says in greeting as I step into the room.

“I’m doing fine Captain Ukitake. How is your health by the way?”

“It’s quite stable. I’ve been feeling very well these past few days,” he says with his charming grin, which becomes a puzzled look once he sees what I hold in my hands. “Mina, why do you have Lieutenant Abarai's badge in your hands?"

"Lieutenants Kira and Hinamori stopped by earlier and asked if I could pass it on to Captain Kuchiki. Apparently, Lieutenant Abarai abruptly left the lieutenants’ meeting without it after he heard that one of the ryokas took a hostage. . . If I must be frank, considering it’s Abarai, I’m not surprised that he acted like he did.”

"He, I see he still has some of that 11th Division fighting spirit in him!" exclaims Kenpachi with a happy sneer. “Looks like you strict stuck ups in the Sixth still can’t snuff that out of him just yet!”

His eye finds its way to the man whose division he was calling out. Byakuya doesn’t bother to entertain Kenpachi with a response, ignoring him in favor of making his way over to me. He doesn’t speak as he holds his hand out, wordlessly asking for his subordinate's badge. His face doesn’t give much away, but his eyes are a sea of frustration and annoyance.

Yeah, he was not too pleased about Abarai moving to handle things on his own.

“Did any of the other lieutenants move to follow him?” he quietly asks as I place the badge into his hand.

“Lieutenants Kira and Hinamori should be following after him, after I gave them a little _nudge_ in the right direction.” I quietly add the last part, hoping that he would catch the hint. I’m not sure that he did, but he does give me a small nod before moving on to the exit.

“HEY! Aren’t you going to say something Princess. . !? OI! Where the hell are you going?! You don’t want to talk!? Got your panties in a twist?!”

If Kenpachi was a normal man, he would have left Byakuya alone to leave without a word. Unfortunately, Kenpachi was not a normal man. He was a fight-loving maniac that itched for battle, and it looked like he was sniffing one out right now.

"I have nothing to say to you Captain Zaraki. I have other matters to attend to."

"Byakuya, are you planning to look for your lieutenant?" Captain Ukitake is quick to ask as he turns to look at Byakuya's back. “If you are, the ryoka will likely not be too far away.”

"If Abarai has decided to face the intruder by himself, then so be it. As lieutenant, he does hold enough authority to confront the ryokas as he sees fit. However, if he falls in battle, that would be inexcusable."

Before anyone could say something in response to that, Byakuya disappears, vanishing in a flash step so quick, untrained eyes would have sworn that he hadn’t been there to begin with. It was impressive, both his exit and his words before said exit, though the latter was also a little unsettling, especially in the cold tone that he used.

In a way, he gave Renji his blessing to confront the intruders from the Living World. However, it seemed the redhead’s actions would be excusable as long as he was _successful_ in the confrontation. Officially, failure was not an option for Renji, and when it came to Byakuya, it was something that he undoubtedly would like to avoid.

However, if things were different, I’m sure Byakuya wouldn’t mind it if Abarai failed his task, and without the need of any repercussions to occur. Sheesh, if that was the case, Byakuya may have acted _himself_ , and wouldn’t that be quite a sight.

Unfortunately, his position as a noble lord, division captain, and by default, a _defender of the Soul Society’s law and order,_ required him to pursue justice against those that deserve it and punish those that fail to seek it, especially those that do it without his command, which Renji _technically did_.

Things are going to get quite tense between the Sixth Division’s higher ups in the coming days, I just know it. 

"Pfft, typical princess with his flashy exits . . ." Kenpachi sneers with grinding teeth before finally leaving, moving at a much slower pace than Byakuya's shunpo.

"Hmm, that's Captain Kuchiki for you, as stalwart as ever. . . The next few days will be quite the trying time for him."

_“You have no idea Ukitake-san.”_ I think to myself as I watch him leave, soon followed by Captain Hitsugaya, who had simply watched the exchange in silent interest before moving to the exit.

Trying times indeed . . .

* * *

 

**_Byakuya's POV_ **

I did not go to my division once I left the First Division barracks.

Instead, I find myself moving from rooftop to rooftop, extending my spiritual senses to keep track of any sign of Abarai’s presence. Already in the past few minutes, his spiritual pressure has both spiked and lessened, an obvious sign that he was engaged in battle.

Judging by how frequently his power seems to rise and fall, Renji's opponent must have really improved his game since the last time we’ve faced him. He may actually prove a challenge this time around.

After a few more minutes of traveling, I realize that I haven’t felt Renji's spiritual pressure rise for a while now. It’s not even at its usual level. Instead, it has flatlined, not to the point where I would consider him deceased, but enough to know that he is at least battle weary and injured.

_So, will I find him standing triumphantly over his downed opponent, or just the opposite?_

Travelling to his current location, I stop in the middle of a fairly empty plaza, save for the corner on the right, where a group of shinigami stood hovering over my fallen lieutenant. Two of them were the Third and Fifth Divisions, just as Minata had mentioned to me earlier

"We need to get Renji to the 4th Division. We can't leave him untreated like this," cries the 5th Division lieutenant, looking rather resolute despite the timidity in her eyes.

"You're right Momo. We gotta get him medical attention, and quick," the Third’s lieutenant adds as he looked around the group. “Someone call it in. Let them know down in the Fourth that they should be prepared to take in another body.”

"That won't be necessary." I say, deciding it was time to finally make my presence known.

Their backs stiffen as soon as they heard my voice, their heads all turning to look at me with surprise, awe, and fear lining their faces.  

“My lieutenant went out on his own accord to face the intruder. He knew the consequences of his decision, regardless of if he won or lost.”

"So, what about it? So, what if he won or lost? Renji still needs medical attention! Are you planning to deny him that much?!"

I never expected that response, especially not from the likes of the Fifth Division lieutenant. She didn’t seem like someone that carried enough backbone for such an outburst, unless it was to come to her captain’s defense that is. It was obvious she adored the man, even if she vainly tried to dismiss it.

Now that I think about it, Abarai had mentioned the he went to the Academy alongside the girl and the blonde man that was advising her to show some more respect. Maybe that’s why she’s suddenly so defensive on his behalf.

“Eh, what’s going on over here?!”

I didn’t need to turn my head like the rest of the group to see where the new voice was coming from. It had that familiar teasing lilt to it that only belonged to one man, one who always seemed to find himself in the mix of everything at times, even when he had no business being a part of it.

"Captain Ichimaru! What are you doing here?”

“Oh Kira, I was just passing through when I sensed you all here . . . Don’t worry, I heard enough to understand the situation, so you don’t really have to explain anything to me.”

“And since you understand the situation, what is your view on it?” his lieutenant asks, already bracing himself for his superior’s response.

"Abarai still needs to face the music. However, he does need medical attention,” His voice is somber for once, but I could hear the challenge in his tone, and I knew it was directed at me. “If you don’t mind Captain Kuchiki, I’ll oversee your lieutenant’s medical treatment. Once the medics decide that Abarai is stable enough, I’ll have him transferred to one of your division’s cell blocks.”

“Very well then . . .” I decide, turning my back before taking my leave. It wasn’t the result I was expecting, but when I think about it, it was probably the best result to get either way.

Gin may be a thorn in my side at times, but he knows when to be helpful when the situation calls for it.

I don’t know if I should be thankful or suspicious of his intentions, but for now, I think I will let this one slide.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Leave a comment if you like!


	8. Facing the Intruders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The chapter title speaks for itself.

_Hmm, master? Do you feel that? Do you feel that spiritual pressure? It feels faint, but . . . familiar._

“ _Indeed, I do Senbonzakura . . .”_ I say as I turn to the direction of the Senzaikyū, the Soul Society’s resident prison complex _. “I believe it’s best to go investigate that presence ourselves. If the ryokas are looking to save Rukia, then that is the place where we will most likely find them.”_

Leaving Abarai in the care of Captain Ichimaru and his men, I move toward the prison, moving with little effort as I jumped from rooftop to rooftop. When I was halfway there, a sudden presence appears on my left. The familiarity of it made it obvious that it was no enemy who meant to do me harm.

Rather, it was the familiarity of a close friend, someone who knows me better than I know myself sometimes.

"Hn, I see you have sensed the spiritual pressure as well, Third Seat Fukudome."

"Indeed, I have, Captain Kuchiki," Minata tells me, her tone low, but at ease, despite the current situation that was ongoing within the Soul Society. “. . . I probably sensed it before you did.”

“You probably did, and yet, you had to catch up to me,” The ease is gone, replaced with a look of annoyance she always reserved for me when we were younger. I haven’t seen it in a long time, so it was bound to reappear one of these days.

Today was apparently that day. “. . . Do you know the identities of the assailants heading for the prison?”

"More or less . . . There are at least two people heading for the Senzaikyū. One has been identified as an ally to the ryokas, while the other is the hostage; a member of the 4th Division," She explains as we make a sharp right turn. “. . . When you think about it, it makes sense. If you want to sneak around and avoid all the shinigami walking about, you head underground, traverse the sewers.”

“The 4th Division is in charge of maintaining the sewers, among other things, which means its members would have a great understanding of the sewer system,” I add, piecing the details together. “The hostage must have been forced to show them the quickest route to the prison . . . Do you have any more information on the ryokas’ ally?”

“Only that he is a member of one of the exiled clans. We haven't identified which one yet," It was Mizukiri who answered, appearing at her master’s side just as Senbonzakura was appearing by mine. “. . . It’s going to take a while before that info comes to light.”

“Now why would a member of an exiled clan help the ryokas?” I hear my spirit ask as we neared the palace. “Helping known intruders will only worsen their situation, damaging their reputation even further.”

“It’s probably someone with nothing left to lose. There are plenty of souls like that after all,” Minata mumbled as we neared the palace. “. . . Rukia is being held in one of the towers of the Shishinrō. That’s likely where they’re heading.”

“Can you get a better read on the two intruders now?” I ask as we arrive on the property, bypassing the two spooked shinigami guarding the gate.

“I can sense them better, but thanks to the high amount of sekkiseki used to build this place, it’s hard for me to get a perfect reading on them.” She grumbled, almost pouting.

I could not blame her for feeling this way though. Many areas were created with sekkiseki stone, but not in such high concentrations like the Senzaikyū and the walls that surrounded the Seireitei. The Fukdomes were famous for being much more sensitive to reiatsu than others, but that ability wasn’t hindered by the sekkiseki’s continuous presence throughout the landscape.

Unless they were close to a high concentration of it that is. Physically, the Fukudomes weren’t bothered by sekkiseki stone, but if they were near a large concentration of the material, they were quick to make their dislike known.

As Minata liked to put it, standing near a place with such high sekkiseki amounts equated to having her vision suddenly get clouded by fog. You are not totally blind, but it is harder to see.

“You may not be able to get a perfect reading on the intruders, but it may not matter now,” I advise as we reached one of the bridges that connected the main building to one of the towers, the one that held my sister in confinement. “We’re here.”

"Only a few steps away now . . .” she whispered as I stepped onto the expanse, her voice sounding somber. We were halfway along when her steps suddenly stop. “. . . You have got to be kidding me.”

I hear her zanpakuto ask what’s wrong, and a quick turn of my head allows me to see the undisputed disbelief on her face.

"I still don't recognize the ally’s spiritual pressure, but I do recognize the hostage's." says Minata, shaking her head. “It’s actually much fainter than the ally’s, but it’s still familiar.”

“If the shinigami’s spiritual pressure is that faint, then he must be a low-ranking member of Captain Unohana’s division.”

“Yeah, not exactly,” she mumbled as she stared down the tower. “The reiatsu belongs to Hanataro Yamada.”

"The seventh seat?" Senbonzakura asks, as if he momentarily lost his hearing. “He’s the one taken hostage?!”

"I believe that's what she just said Senbonzakura." Mizukiri grumbles, coming to her master’s defense. "Yamada may not have impressive spiritual pressure or overall combat ability, but he deserves his seat. Trust me!"

“I’ll take your word for it," he tells her, his dismissive tone earning him a slightly murderous look from the blonde.

Something tells me he’s going to rue that decision, eventually. Mizukiri was never one for being so brazenly dismissed.

"You two can talk later," Minata orders as she points forward. ". . . We have incoming company."

I turn around to see my sister, Yamada, and a bulky looking man emerging from the tower. Thanks to her prolonged stay, I can barely even sense a fleck of Rukia's reiatsu. It was almost nonexistent, to a point it would have been easy to mistake her as a human. Physically, she didn’t look much better either, her already skinny form looking even thinner, but her face was the one that told the fully story.

She looked worn and weary, the stress of everything that has happened to her now starting to take root.

Imprisonment has not suited Rukia in the slightest.

It was the seventh seat who was the first to see us, his already wide eyes widening even further when he caught sight of us.

"CAPTAIN KUCHIKI! THIRD SEAT FUKUDOME!" he exclaims, his voice alerting Rukia and the hulking man to our presence.

"Brother!"

I held off the wince that threatened to show on my face when I heard the familial term. Even after everything, including my role in her captivity, she’s still so willing to call me 'brother', even though I do not deserve to be called that, especially not now.

"Brother. You're a Kuchiki?! You're Byakuya Kuchiki's sister?!" the unidentified man cries out, his shock turning into disbelief as he stared Rukia down. I couldn’t help but notice how quickly his hands clenched into fists when she nodded yes.

Hmm, whoever this exile is, he must have some problem with my clan, or at least with me.

". . . And here I thought it was just an enemy expertly hiding their reiatsu, but it was actually just a plain old bug." I say, knowing my words would aggravate the unknown man.

"What the hell did you say?!" The man asks, his anger front and center as he foolishly moves to attack me. I made sure to show him why it was a grave mistake on his part, damaging his arm before he could move another step.

"You are better off just going home right now. If you stay, you will die," I say bluntly from a few feet behind him. “At least if you leave now, the worst you may get is a long stay in a holding cell.”

"HAH! Do you really think I'm going to be scared of a guy like you?!" the man dares to cackle, his fierce gaze burning with a familiar intensity, one I haven’t seen in years. "Besides I can't run away! As a member of the Shiba family, I won’t be scared away by a guy like you!"

_“Shiba? So, he’s a member of that clan hm?”_

The Shibas used to be the reason why there was Five Great Noble Families instead of the current four. Specializing in fireworks, the Shibas used to be on the same level of prestige as my family and Mina’s, but ever since the death of Kaien Shiba, the former lieutenant of the 13th, that prestige fell, and the family never recovered. Eventually, they couldn’t be considered a Great Noble Family anymore, and have not made any headway in the Seireitei since.

Last time I checked, they were living quietly in the Rukongai, but it seems they have started to make some noise now, and not in a good way.

"A member of the Shiba Clan you say?”

"That’s right dammit! What's it to you?!" he asks me, still daring to be brash despite his circumstances.

"My apologies; I was planning on just stopping you, but after hearing that you are a member of the Shiba Clan, it will be my pleasure to finish you, permanently."

Senbonzakura takes that as his cue to act, transforming back into his sword form before I lifted him up to my starting position.

"No . . . DON’T DO THIS BROTHER!"

The strength of Rukia’s voice almost took me by surprise, mostly because I never realized she could shout so loudly. It would have been easy to shift my gaze to her, to see her watch me with a look that pleaded with me to stop my attack.

But I don’t shift my gaze.

Her pleas fall on deaf ears.

"Scatter, Senbonzakura!"

* * *

 

**_Minata's POV_ **

“Senbonzakura really does personify the phrase ‘Beautiful, but deadly’, doesn’t he?”

I couldn’t deny how right Mizukiri was as we watched her fellow spirit transform into his shikai, her tone holding a slight edge of awe to it.

It should be impossible for one single blade to split into a thousand pieces, but that impossibility became reality once Byakuya discovered what his zanpakuto could actually do. The sunlight reflects off the surface of each piece of metal, giving the impression that Senbonzakura was a harmless mass of cherry blossom petals floating in the wind, and not the dangerously lethal cloud of cutting destruction that he truly is.

In truth, Senbonzakura is a very misleading sword, luring you in with his beauty before ending your life in a swarm of pink whimsy.

He’s pretty much the living - or _spiritual_ \- personification of the phrase ‘death by a thousand cuts’, but he cuts you all at once instead of one at a time.

Now that I think about it, he likely can cut someone one at a time if he wanted to, or if Byakuya willed it, but that likely will never happen.

Thankfully, neither are fans of torture.

If they were, we would have been stuck witnessing the slow, painful process of watching the Shiba bleed with each individual cut he made, continuing with it until he was at least unconscious, and I would be stuck wondering why I was friends with him to begin with.

Instead, we are saved from that kind of imagery. Byakuya chooses to end things with one move, leaving his opponent - if you could call him that - laying in a pool of his own blood as Senbonzakura is quick to move away, giving everyone a chance to see what he has managed to accomplish with just one command, but he may have fallen back too soon.

The Shiba still breathes.

Byakuya eventually notices this as well.

"Hm, I see you are still alive. . . Not many can say that they survived my blade’s first attack. I commend you for your resilience," Byakuya admits, his voice cold as he raises Senbonzakura's hilt above his head.

I knew the high amount of sekkiseki stone was interfering with my ability to sense reiatsu, but despite that hinderance, I could still feel a steady presence approaching our position.

It took a pale hand stopping Byakuya from dealing the final blow to make me realize that the steady presence belonged to a captain.

One of the eldest and most wizened of the group, to be exact.

"Captain Ukitake!" I say in surprise as the white-haired man appears behind the Kuchiki head. His twin zanpakuto, Sogyo no Kotowari, is right at his side with twin looks of concern on their faces, ready to leap into action if needed.

"What do you think you are doing Captain Ukitake?" Byakuya stoically asks as he moves his gaze to the leader of the 13th Division.

"I should be asking you that Captain Kuchiki,” Ukitake kindly bites back, never flinching from Byakuya’s hard gaze. “We both know that releasing one’s zanpakuto in the Konnatokoru is a first-class offense, and you’re not one for breaking these rules so easily."

"The special war time orders have been enacted. It is perfectly fine for me to use my shikai here." says Byakuya in his usual stoic voice, which I was half listening to once a new presence suddenly comes across my radar.

It felt obnoxious, unmistakable in its potential power as it neared. What made it worrisome was that I did not recognize it at all. It doesn’t feel like anything I’ve sensed previously from the other captains and lieutenants. It was a complete unknown, which makes it very dangerous to go against, regardless of how skilled the presence is.

"This spiritual pressure . . ." I say, not bothering to continue my sentence as I look toward the direction that it may be coming from.

“What is it Minata?” I hear Ukitake ask. Hearing this, I turn my head to see that everyone was now looking at me, except for the Shiba, who was still unconscious, and Yamada, who was looking like he was still trying to get his bearings together. “Is something coming?”

"More like _someone_ ,” I clarify, looking back in the direction that the presence was approaching from. “Whoever it is, their reiatsu is on the level of a captain, but I don't recognize it at all. It’s a total unknown to me."

". . . It is not an unknown to me," Byakuya admits, his tone cold. “I recognize this presence, but it does feel different from the last time I encountered it.”

A sudden thud near where Rukia and the intruders were standing - or lying, in some cases - bring our attention down the pathway to see that a new figure has decided to make his presence known. It didn’t take me long to realize that the figure was the one who’s reiatsu I’ve been tracking for the past few minutes now.

He was obviously male, tall and lean with noticeably bright orange hair that seemed so farfetched that I almost thought that he was a zanpakuto spirit himself. He turns his head, and I couldn’t help but be shocked, not just by how young the boy was - he’s obviously a teenager - but how much he reminded me of a certain Shiba that used to be Ukitake’s second in command.

Judging from the shocked look on the white-haired man's face, he must be thinking the same thing too.

Or he’s possibly shocked at the sheer size of the boy’s zanpakuto. Instead of it being a standard katana, wakizashi, or a nodaichi, it’s a cleaver, one that’s almost as tall as him.

If that wasn’t as good a symbol of the great spiritual pressure I could feel rolling off him, I don’t know what is then.

"Long time; no see Byakuya Kuchiki." the boy cockily says, greeting said Kuchiki by pointing his sword at him in challenge.

"Ichigo?" We could hear Rukia whisper, but she says nothing else as she looks up at the boy in wide-eyed disbelief.

So this is the so called Ichigo Kurosaki, the one who risked the wrath of the Soul Society by invading the landscape, causing pandemonium in his wake, daring to point his blade at the man who previously cut him down, all for the sake of rescuing a person he barely knows.

He’s either the most unflinchingly bravest person I’ve ever witnessed, or the most brazenly foolish.

He certainly knows how to make an entrance though.

"Friend of yours?" Ukitake dares to ask, turning his eyes on Byakuya.

"This boy is no friend of mine," Byakuya flatly states, his tone cold. “He’s just a flea that doesn’t know when to stay down.”

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: What do you guys think? I want to know. Please review! I appreciate the constructive criticism.


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